His Inner Demons
by Megasniffles
Summary: In a cold, isolated village Hiccup feels all alone, his mother died under circumstances unknown to him, and his father is as distant as his memories of her. With an increasingly large amount of nightmares, will Hiccup be able to find solace in Jack, or will he lose himself to fear? AU modern day story, no powers, rated M for later chapters.
1. The Meeting

Chapter One.

As I wearily opened my eyes I saw the frost encasing my window and immediately knew that it was a cold, frosty winter morning but then again, every morning is cold and frosty where I live. And what's more, I have to go to school in this weather, hail or downpour, it never closes. Ever. Sighing I sat there in comfortable darkness until my alarm clock went off in an maddening, shrill, ringing noise that could make a crow want to bury it's head in the sand. I threw my covers off me as soon as I shut up that infernal clock, if I didn't my great hulk of a dad would descend on me, telling me to wake up before awkwardly trying to make idle conversation. It's not that I hate him or dislike him in anyway, I just don't know him; if he was cheese, then I'd be chalk. The other families in the village still can't understand how such a bear of a man could have a skinny beanpole like me for a son, never mind the fact that we also have completely different personalities. I'd rather sit and read, whereas he'd rather watch the football or ogle some attractive woman. Hell, he'd ogle any woman that breathes. I'd much rather ogle someone who's…. not… not a woman. Yes that's right, a skinny, quiet, gay boy who has daddy issues. It's like something out of a bad Hollywood film.

I trudged slowly into the bathroom, flicking the light switch as I pass it. The light gives out multiple failed attempts in quick succession before finally brightening the tiled room. I stared into the mirror at my reflection; my tussled brown hair was all over the place, my freckles were more prominent due to being in the dark for a time and my eyes looked as if I hadn't slept in forever. All in all, I looked rough, and I didn't really care very much. I mean, it's not as if I have anyone to look good for, I'm the only gay person in my tiny gathering of a school. Washing my face and teeth, I look in the mirror more closely.

"Seventeen years and I still have never had to shave," I mutter to myself. It's true in all my seventeen years I have never shaved a singles hair on my face. It's another thing that I am ridiculed for in the village. Pushing these depressing thoughts to the back of my mind I return to my room.

After whipping on some clothes and making my brown hair was mildly presentable, I feed my beaded dragon his breakfast of multiple disgusting insects. It's quite ironic his name is Toothless as he actually has lots of little teeth that hurt like hell. I watched him approach one of the insects as if it was actually alive, then pouncing on it and swallowing it whole. It was kind of disgusting but he always looked so happy when he leapt on them, as if he was trying to smile somehow.

"Hiccup! Are you going to have this breakfast or am I gonna have to eat it for you?"

I nearly jump out my skin at the sound of my Dad bellowing out my name. Oh, can't tell what my name is from that sentence? Well, it's Hiccup. Yes, yes I know apparently it's a tradition in this village to name your child the most belittling name possible. Still, I suppose I could've been called something like "Snotlout". Snapping out of my shock I set off down the staris of my house, and found my Dad in his usual position. In front of the T.V stuffing his face. With fish. I. Hate. Fish. We are not the most well of family so all we can afford is different types of fish and vegetables. It's a wonder I'm not skinnier then I actually am. I look at my Dad again and immediately wish I hadn't.

"Come on Hiccup, eat something before I eat it all" my Dad grumbles out between mouthfuls of what I think was a cod stake. Do shops even sell those?

"No thanks Dad, I'll just have an apple and wait until my school lunch." I relied as I grabbed my poor excuse for breakfast from a bowl on the kitchen side and washed under the tap before heading towards the door.  
"Son, you cannot live of those meals forever, you know? They're not good for you."

"Yeah, because having fish every day is really a nutritious diet," I mumbled dryly.

"What was that?"  
"Nothing Dad."

"Well if you don't eat properly you won't be able to change... this," my Dad said grumpily, knowing I had uttered some sarcastic remark under my breath.

"What's "this?" I questioned.

"This," he replied sternly and gestured to me.

"But you just gestured to all of me," I was genuinely hurt by that comment, he'd always been harsh but never had he said something like that to me. He looked at me for a couple of seconds, looking as if he was debating whether to reply or not, until he finally turned his back on me and headed towards the stairs.

" Get your head out of the clouds and remember not to slip on any ice patches, like you always do."

"Sure Dad." I left through the door.

Entering the porch I grabbed my coat, which was probably the most expensive thing I own, as well as the most important to me; it's not just because it's fur lined to keep me warm in the everlasting blizzard that encases my village, but also because it is the last thing my mother left me before she passed away years ago. You might be wondering how it still fits me, but my mum always bought clothes that were much to big so that I could wear them for years to come. That tradition died with her. I looked at the houses as I walked past them, many going up for sale or being prepared to be demolished; people just don't want to stay in an isolated village for too long I guess. Cars went past me at speeds that were clearly too dangerous to for the amount of ice on the roads. I started wondering what it would be like to own a car. All nice and warm, hardly ever having to walk anywhere again. But then I would also be stuck with my Dad in an enclosed space while he tries to make small talk and me replying with my usual sarcastic comments. No, I'll stick to walking, thanks very much.

I carried on walking for about fifteen more minutes before a boy walked up to me. He looked to be my age, white hair, cute face. His blue hoodie was snow covered and hung over his jeans which were tight, but not too tight around his legs. That's when I noticed he wasn't wearing any socks on his feet, just a pair of trainers. Surely he must be freezing, but his face gave no such indication. He seemed to wait until I finished looking him over before he spoke, giving me a wary look as he did so.

"Do you know how to get to the school from here?" he asked in a deep voice, much deeper than I expected. Maybe he wasn't my age?

"Yeah, it's about another twenty minutes that way," I said, pointing in front of me, "The path leads straight to it so you can't miss it"

He smiled coolly at me "Thanks, hey do you wanna lift, no way am I walking all the way there!" Know this boy may be cute, but no way am I getting in a car with a random stranger.

"No thanks," I reply and carry on walking before he can say anything else. It was probably very rude of me, but I am not in the mood for social interaction this morning, let alone with another cute boy who will invariably turn out to be a jerk to me.

It took another ten minutes before I saw anybody else from the village, everyone must be asleep. She was a young girl from my class, most popular girl in school. Astrid. Supposedly so beautiful teachers just give her the grades she wants. We pass each other, giving hard, firm glares as we did so. She always hated me for being the only boy who didn't seem to want to get in her. Giving a flick of her sun blonde hair, which virtually ate my face, she mumbles some remark under her breath that I'm sure was a homophobic one. My attention was so focused on glaring at her and imagining many horrible things to do to her, I didn't notice the ice patch in front of me, I suppose that will teach me for being too wilful. I fall for what feels like forever, the wind blowing through my hair, wrapping itself around my face. I try to look for something to cling to but to no avail. I feel my head slam into the unforgiving ground, my brain felt on fire as my vision went hazy. The throbbing in my head was so intense I couldn't stand it, I've never hit my head while falling before. I lie there writhing in agony clutching my head, forcing myself to stay awake; falling asleep in this cold and with a head injury would be the death of me. I hear a car door open and close as my eyes begin to blur despite my fighting. My hearing becomes muffled as I hear someone run over to me, shouting to see if I would respond, and before my eyes are encased by darkness I see a white mess hovering in front of my face.

I awake feeling extremely groggy. Without opening my eyes I reach up to feel there back of my head and find it had been bandaged up by what felt like a scarf. Feeling slightly confused I wearily opened my eyes to find I was staring at grey roof of some sort. I panicked slightly as the realisation I was in a car settled in. Finally, for the first time in my life I'm actually in a car and I don't even know how I got here or who put me here. What if I was kidnapped while I was unconscious by some raving psychopath? What if I get killed or worse? What's going to happen to me? Oh god, oh god, oh god. I gave out a small sob which soon turned into a shrill yelp as someone in the seat in front of me turned round to look at me, smiling like I was his wife who had just birthed his first born child. My eyes widened as I saw that it was the boy from earlier who asked for directions to the school. He looked at me, smiling happily as those glorious blue eyes shone of his like frozen morning dew on a blade of crisp grass. I still felt thoroughly confused but my panic was settling slightly at the fact he wasn't looking at me with lust, just relief, which I assumed was because I was finally awake.

"How are you feeling, sore?" He asked me with his voice dripping with obvious concern. Why was he so worried, we've never met before?

"Obviously," was my reply. I felt bad when he looked a bit downtrodden from my reply so I decided to be a bit more gracious, he did take care of me after all. "Thanks for taking care of me."  
"Ahh, it was nothing, you're so light it was easy to get you in the car, and don't worry about your head, the bleedings not that bad."

I gave out a nervous chuckle; I didn't actually know that I was bleeding. I stared to inspect my arms before he stopped me.

"Don't worry, I checked if you were bleeding anywhere else and you aren't," he said, smiling at me.

My first thought was relief, my second was just how thorough did he check me? I began to feel my face turn crimson at the thought.

"So, Mr Graceful," my face contorted in displeasure at the nickname, "I'm sorry to that say this but we're not going anywhere."

My panic immediately returned, nicknames, ambiguous lines and the fact he possibly undressed me when I was unconscious, this guy was definitely bad news.

"What, why?" I questioned, sounding much more scared than I wanted, "Why won't you let me go?"

His face brightened in shock, "It's not that I'm keeping you here, but if you wanna go to a closed school in a car that has a engine that's kaput be my guest." He gestured dramatically to a signal on a screen of some sort. It showed an arrow pointing at a red E so I assumed that meant empty.

I felt thoroughly idiotic.

"Oh, my names Jack by the way. Jack Frost."  
"Hiccup. Hiccup Horrendous Haddock 3rd " He immediately laughed at my name.

"Oh and I thought my parents were harsh after naming after a spirit, but your Mum and Dad must hate you!"

"It's just my Dad actually, my Mum passed away a few years ago." I felt suddenly saddened by how many times I had thought of my mother today. Jack instantly looked regretful of his words and put a comforting hand on my shoulder. Well, it was mean to be comforting, but his hands were just freezing.

"I'm sorry about that, if I'd have known-" he stopped and looked to the floor.

I didn't really mind, he didn't do it on purpose, but it would be really good if he could remove his hand about now.


	2. Boyfriends?

_**Wow, thanks everyone for the veiws and reveiws! This is my first fanfic, so I was quite nervous about it...**_

_**This chapter is longer than the other one, I'm still trying to find the right length, so tell me what you prefer: Longer or shorter?**_

We sat there in awkward silence for a while, with his hand still on me. What should I do, peel it off, only close friends would do something like that, right? But then again, who actually puts their hand on a strangers shoulder anyway, and for this long too? As if he read my mind Jack's hand slowly left my shoulder when he turned back around into his seat again. I bet my face gave away my discomfort. I heard him breathe heavily through his nose, I pondered whether he was going to sleep as he tilted his head slightly.

"Well, it's a snow day might as well enjoy it!" He suddenly announced as he leapt from the car door that he swung open with a violent glee.

I watched as he ran around in the snow before collapsing and making a snow angel, lying there for a second before he raised just his head to look at me.

"You coming or what?"

He had to be kidding. I have just woken from being unconscious after slamming my head into the merciless concrete and he wants me to run around in the snow with him. The look on my face must have been priceless because Jack was in hysterics.

"Oh right I forgot, concussion and all," he chuckled as he walked back to the open car door.

"Yeah, because something like that is so easy to forget," he stopped chuckling, "Anyway, I don't want to go out there."  
He walked round to my side and opened the door in a dramatic motion, "You're just a bundle of fun, aren't you, Hic?" He began to pick me up bridal style and my eyes grew to the size of the sun.

"Um, what are you doing?"

"Well if you're not going to walk around, I'll just carry you."  
"Right, because just sitting in the car with me makes no sense at all."  
"You're really sarcastic, y'know that, Hic?"

"Hmph"

He continued to carry me to a bench in the roadside field where he put me down gently. As soon as he let go of me a small pathetic whine escaped my lips.

"Aww, miss me already?"  
It's not because I liked it, he was just warming me up, or at least that's what I tried to tell myself.

"So you've dragged me out to this bench in the  
middle of a frozen field, what now?"

"Well, we can't go anywhere because I'm too lazy and you're just too clumsy, so how about we get to know each other?"  
This was not how I pictured my day going, but I suppose it wasn't the worst thing that could happen to me either.

"Ok fine, but you go first."

"Well then, the names Jack, I'm seventeen years old, I like video games, driving, eating and sleeping, I don't like summer, maths or salamanders."

Okay that last one got my attention, salamanders, really?

"Um let's see, ooh, I'm an only child, my parents live far away so I have a flat nearby, and hmm I'm a virgin."  
I sputtered on my own spit and nearly fell off the bench at that last comment.

"Whoa there, too much information don't you think?"  
"Well I couldn't think of anything else, so now it's your turn."

I sighed and looked up in thought and away from this shameless boy.

"Fine, my names Hiccup," another giggle from him, earning him a smack on the arm "I like animals, my dream job is to be a zoo keeper, I don't really get along with my Dad or anybody else in the village-"

"Why?" he interrupted.

"It's a private matter."

"Well it can't be that private if they all know about it, come on I saved your life, tell me!"

God, he is even more like a child than I thought, it makes me wonder why I ever questioned his age when he first spoke to me.

"If you must know it's.. it's because... I'm-"  
"A hippo, a secretly blue Martian, the Easter Bunny? Come on, it can't be that bad!"  
"Oh for the love of God, I'm Gay!"  
He had a look of shock on his face before he started laughing, great another person to add to the never ending list.

"Was that it? It took you that long to tell me that? I thought it was gonna be something really bad!"  
"Wait, what, you don't care?" Wow, out of everyone, this is by far the best reaction, not the ideal one, but still the best.

"No, of course I don't, be a bit hypocritical if I did!" He didn't seem to know what he was saying as the words came flowing from his mouth in between laughs. Wait, so does that mean he's gay too? I decided not to pry, or at least to obviously anyway.

"So why do you live so far from your parents, have you had an argument?" yeah, real subtle Hiccup, way to go.

"No way, I love my parents no matter what! They just have very inflexible jobs, and this was the only school that accepted me, so I moved alone. It's not a problem, I mean, I'm old enough to live by myself.

We sat there talking about trivial things for a while longer, like how he had a temperamental Rabbit named Bunnymund and why I was wearing an oversized coat. It was nice to have someone not look at me like trash, and who was potentially like me to boot.

Jack stretched his arms above his head and spoke, "Hey, you gotta phone on you? I can call someone to come and help us out here."

"Yeah, it's in my school bag."  
"Oh"

"Jack, you did pick up my bag didn't you?" I rubbed my temple with my fingers, that bag had almost half a year's worth of work inside.

"Well I'm sorry, I was to busy trying to help you after you fainted, but no! I should've been more focused on the bag!" His face was red with irritation, making me feel slightly guilty, he did help me a lot, but then again, he also lost me half a year's work, so they cancel each other out.

"No who's the sarcastic one? Look, Jack, can't you please go and get it, we won't be able to go anywhere otherwise?"  
"Why don't you go and get it?" he spat.

I gave him a dumbfounded look and pointed at my head, he seemed to relent a bit.

"Alright, wait here, it wasn't that far back, and the bag isn't going to have grown legs and walked off."  
As he trudged off into the distance in search of my lost item, looking like a dejected puppy. As he went, I couldn't help but admire his butt. What? We may have just met but I'm still a guy, and we have needs!

I sat there for a few minutes until I heard crunching footsteps behind me.

"So did you find my bad then, Jack?" I asked turning around.

To my surprise it was not Jack, no it was that bitch Astrid, giggling like an idiot at the scarf wrapped around my head.

"So who's Jack then, Haddock, your imaginary friend? 'Cos you sure as hell can't have any real ones. Not a freak like you." She sneered at me. I don't care if she is a girl, I am so tempted to whack the pretty out of her right now.

I was about to argue with her when a voice suddenly spoke up behind me.

"Never knew I was imaginary, did you Hiccup?" Jack had come back, and with my bag too.

I gave him a small smile which he returned before he looked at Astrid angrily.

"Hey, what's your problem with Hic, just leave him alone if you don't like him."  
Astrid did not seem to be listening, she just seemed shocked by the fact that I was actually out with another human being. Unfortunately this silence didn't last. Shifting her weight in the snow and placing one hand on her hips she looked Jack over as he sat next to me again.

"So then handsome, you his boyfriend or what?" Every word seethed from her mouth in annoyance.

"No! We only just met each other" I squeaked out, but she didn't even look at me.

"Aw, why lie baby?" Jack sighed as he out an arm around my shoulders, much to the surprise of both me and Astrid. What the hell is he doing?

"Yes, I'm his boyfriend, and don't call me handsome, doll face" his face seemed to darken as if that was a threat rather than a statement.

The sounds coming from my mouth were a mixture of embarrassment, strangulated noises and glee at the fact Astrid was getting irritated while Jack just smirked smugly at her.

Putting my hand over his cold ear, I whispered, "Don't I get a say in this, what the hell are you doing?"  
"Just play along, if she wants to annoy you for being gay, then we may as well give her a run for her money!"  
"What, no, I don't want to-"But I never got to finish my ramble of a sentence as Jack just looked at me and placed his hand lightly on mine, making me immediately shut up.

My eyes widened slightly at the contact, his skin was cool as ice from the chill in the air, yet smooth as a new born's cheek. I looked begrudgingly up at Astrid, seeing she had an expression of slight shock at our contact.

"Yes, he is my boyfriend, and his name's Jack. Only I get to call him handsome." I felt utterly ridiculous as I said the boy I have not known for more than a day was my partner. Jack looked at me with a sickly sweet smile, then turned back to the seething girl in front of us

"Believe me now then, doll face?" I can't believe he just called her that again, it aggravates me even though it's patronising, it's still flirting.

Astrid's expression seemed to worsen at being called that name again, opening her mouth, only for a jumble of unintelligent sounds to come cascading out.

"Hmph" She turned away and stormed off in a rage, kicking snow as she went. She looked like a six year old whose mum wouldn't buy them that toy they always wanted. Just before she was half way between the road and where we were sitting in the field, she turned and yelled in a horribly jarring voice, "dirty queers!"

Personally this didn't affect me at all, I was used to it after all the amount of times that it had happened around the village, but Jack on the other hand, no, Jack got angry. Really angry. He fell to the floor in a quick movement and began to gather together a big collection of snow and compacted it in to one perfect sphere, right before launching it directly at the back of Astrid's head. The ball hit with a most satisfying thwack as she tripped from the sheer impact, her arms flailing about as she tried to stop herself from falling. Landing face first into the deep snow, she laid there motionless for about a minute or two and I almost began to think that Jack had killed her. Unfortunately, it seems prayers really do fall on deaf ears as she quickly got up, dusted herself off, turned to flip us the birdie and walked away as if nothing had happened.

"That's it I'm throwing another one, this time she won't walk away so cockily," Jack muttered angrily, crouching in front of me to gather much more snow.

Looking at his red face, it was clear he wasn't going to calm down on his own anytime soon, as much as I hated Astrid, I wasn't going to jail for assault. Had Jack really never been insulted before?  
"Jack, stop. It doesn't matter, really," I put my hand on his shoulder, trying to comfort him; he instantly turned around and loomed over me. This was the first time I had noticed how much smaller than him I really was, he had a good foot one me, it made me feel even weaker than usual.

"Yes it does! How can you say that! She only said it once to me and look at me! How can you put up with that every single day?"

"You learn not to care."  
"Well I care, and don't say it as if you don't matter, because you do!"

Ok, now he was sounding more like a lecturer than the cheerful teenage boy that I sort of knew.

We both said nothing for the next ten minutes, I decided it was best to let Jack calm himself down in his own time. I was never good at comforting people, it was always something I disliked about myself. Whereas most people would hug or give words of encouragement, I would be the one hovering my hands near the person, uttering out sections of sentences in a vain attempt to comfort them. So in the end I just stopped trying, it seemed like it was just hassle for the other person and made me feel stupid.

"Hey, are you gonna call for help or what?." Jack announced, throwing my bag lightly into my lap. He stood and picked me up bridal style yet again before walking to the car.

"Is this going to become a thing with you?" I joked. He didn't reply, maybe I should just keep quiet for a bit longer.

He placed me down in the passenger seat and I immediately called the emergency services. As the phone rang Jack got in the driver's seat and just stared at me for a while, then turned and looked out his window. I wish I knew what he was thinking about; did Astrid upset him that much, have I upset him? If so, how did I do that? By not reacting to Astrid's insult? Was he joking about want to be my boyfriend? As my thoughts got deeper a woman suddenly picked up the phone, her gruff voice booming in my ear canals.

"Emergency services, how may I help you?"

"Hello, our car is out of gas, we're stuck on-" I stopped, I have no idea where we are.

Turning to Jack I tried to grab his attention, "Jack, where are we?"

When he didn't answer I raised my voice, "Jack!" Well, that definitely worked, he jumped out of his skin and flung his head in my direction.

"What?"

"Where are we?"

"Um, in the car?"

"No snow-boy, what road are we on?"  
"Hmm, four downs field."  
"We're on four downs field," I told the woman, wondering if she was still there.

"Of course sir, I'll send out a rescue car, they should be there within fifteen minutes with some fuel, thank you for your patience."  
She hung up immediately, making me think she was slightly annoyed at such a simple request.

"It'll be fifteen minutes before they get here, what do you want to do in the mean time?"

Yet again he ignored me, "Jack? Will you listen to me?"

"Huh, what yeah, I heard you?"  
"Then reply or something."

"Yeah, sure whatever."  
That was it, I've had enough, sighing heavily I turned to look towards the window. I would just walk home now and leave him here if there wasn't the risk of me falling again and giving myself a worse head wound.

Yet again we sat in silence until the men turned up. The man knocked heavily on my window, which seemed to greatly aggravate Jack. Well, even more than he already was. Looking up the first thing I saw was a long brown beard than encompassed my whole vision. If it wasn't for his think glasses I'm sure his whole face would disappear between his expanse of hair on his un-seeable head.

"So you kids need gas then do you?"

My initial instinct was to reply with a sarcastic remark, but then I remembered that if he left me here, I might not get home for quite a while.

"Yes, please, thanks for coming so quickly," putting on my best smile I tried to get this over with as quickly as possible.

As soon as the words left my lips, Jack laughed loudly, oh so he listens to me know?

Giving Jack a weird look, the man went to the back of the car and filled the engine with petrol.

Returning to the front of the car, this time Jack's window, he spoke somewhat heatedly, "That'll be a tenner, if you please."

Jack dug a hand into his wallet, his eyes widening after he did so, "Hiccup," he spoke calmly, at least he's talking to me again, "Do you have any money one you?"

That bastard.

The drive home was quiet, eerily quiet. I'm not going to say you could hear a pin drop because when can you ever actually hear a pin dropping? But the lack of any other noise apart from the wheels on the road was certainly unsettling.

When we got outside my house Jack offered to help me inside.

"No, I can walk now thanks." I opened the door and stood up, to my astonishment I didn't prove myself wrong and fall face first into the snow.

"Thanks again Jack, see you at school."

Suddenly looking disappointed he just smiled at me weakly started the car.


	3. School

**Hello once again readers! I'm glad you're still looking at this story and that everyone seems to be enjoying it so far, as I felt like I had nothing else to do, I wrote you a extra long chapter, no, really, it's as long as the other two combined, as a thank you.**

**Also as requested by PheonixDumpling, I have included more about Stoic and Hiccup's Mother, though hopefully not quite as you'd expect!**

**And as a last note, this story WILL turn into a romance between the two, most likely in the next chapter. I just didn't want it to be a story where they meet, fall in "love" after five minutes and then know nothing about each other. I'm trying to build up the feelings of a crush which they will then act on, and then fall in love. **

**So, question, should Hiccup and Jack act on their crush in the next chapter, or should I let them know each other for a bit longer to let the relationship develop more naturally?**

The door slammed behind me and as soon as I set foot in the door I realised I still had Jack's scarf on my head.

"Urgh, I was talking to that man wearing this?"

Deciding that having one more person think I was an utter freak wouldn't matter, I went to the kitchen to eat something to quieten the everlasting rumbling in my stomach.

"Hiccup, where have you been, school wasn't on today and no-one knew where you were!"

Upon hearing my Dad's voice boom through the house I decided it wasn't worth lying to him.

"I was on my way to school, but I fell and hit my head. A guy found me and took care of me but the car broke down so we had to wait for help," I replied hearing Dad approach me from behind. I can just imagine what he's going to say next.

"You spent the whole day with a boy in a car in the middle of nowhere?" Yep, there it is, "What did you two do all that time?"

"Dad we're just... we're just friends, look I have the receipt from the rescue team."

Looking thoroughly unconvinced my Dad just sighed heavily muttering something under his breath, I'm sure he said something about mum.

"Look Hiccup, just go to bed, you need rest for school tomorrow."

Grabbing apple, I realised I had nothing to eat all day, so I took another and headed upstairs.

I went into the bathroom straightaway, taking off all my clothes, and the scarf, god I can't believe I kept that on and Dad said nothing, and hopped under the cool water. We couldn't afford hot water, but as I never knew any different I didn't mind it. Feeling the water run down my body, I put my head under the gentle stream. Well, turns out a gentle stream can feel like a waterfall on a head wound. Look like I'm not washing my hair tonight.

My mind wandered back to the events today. Why did Jack even look after me like he did, what was with the bridal style carrying, why get so upset over Astrid when he isn't actually gay, and why did he look so sad when I left him? I would probably never find out the answer to these questions as he will go to my school tomorrow, invariably become popular and treat me like a leper or freak like everyone else in this god forsaken village. But would he really? Maybe Jack was different, he did defend me from the prettiest girl I know. Pretty but a bitch. So maybe he did like me after all. Huh listen to me, I sound like a love stricken teenage girl.

Turning off the shower I wrapped a towel around my body and another loosely around my hair. I looked in my wall mirror and saw I resembled an ugly woman at a beauty salon with all the towels and my painfully unmanly frame. Maybe I should do something about that. I could get a job and help my Dad bring in extra money, but then who would want to hire a midget homo with a bad attitude? See, this is the attitude that I'm talking about.

"Just forget it, I'll think more in the morning," mumbling to myself I threw on some clean pyjamas, which were a pain to find despite my shoebox sized room, and climbed into bed. My hair was still slightly damp, but I couldn't be bothered to get up and dry it properly, I just wanted the temporary peace and solace that sleep offered me.

I don't know how long it was until sleep engulfed me, but I was soon dreaming of my mother. She was facing away from me, crouched and sobbing.

"Hiccup, what have you done my son?"

"Mum, what's wrong?"  
Yet again my oh so brilliant comforting skills came to the rescue as I gawkily placed my hand on her skinny shoulder, "Mum, look at me." This wasn't my mother, she's been dead for a long time; so why do I feel like I need this woman to look at me with the eyes that only a mother can hold?

She turned slowly at first, only her head, looking at me from the corner of her eyes. But these were not the eyes of a loving mother. No, these eyes were black and a void as a bottomless pit. Recoiling in fear, I withdrew my hand.

"Hiccup, you did this to me. Why, Hiccup, why?" She kept turning her head until a sickening snap echoed in the expanse of black that surrounded us, her face was revealed to be gaunt and malnourished, her cheekbones protruding out due to her extreme lack of cheeks. She fell forwards, landing with a crunching noise as the impact broke her neck further. Her arms, once so still, began to shake in spasms, flying in multiple directions, looking as if they were about to explode. Then they stopped and suddenly her corpse was gone. No emaciated, lifeless, skull of a face staring at me like I was insignificant. Just a large bubbling pool of black sludge, quietly breaking the silence that would set in otherwise.

That's when I heard it, an atrocious laugh that could make even sour milk curdle even more. Every fibre of my being shivered as the hairs on the back of my neck became erect.

"Did you think you were going to have an adorable dream about your dear mummy? Do you know what's more powerful than love, Hiccup? It's fear."

The voice moved around the room, one second being right behind me, playing with strands of my hair, the next it was above me, giving the impression of a giant that could crush me on a whim.

"Hahaha, come now Hiccup, where's that usual stony attitude, what about the usual sarcastic comments?"

I felt a long finger trail up my spine, the nails piercing every separate section of bone that it could find, yet when I turned around there was nothing there, just more shadows.

"So, you want to see me that bad do you?" A figure started emerging from the sludge in front of me, the slime falling from its body as it rose ever higher, looming menacingly above me. Long and gangly, his skin appeared a sickly grey and his eyes burned an intense shade of gold, they looked as if they held the pain of a life once lost, and the evil of a thousand spirits. Slowly walking backwards, I tried to escape, but ended up stopping in my tracks, it was as if this creature had cursed me. Paralysed with fear, it advanced towards me, chuckling grimly as it did so. Extending its arm slowly out towards me, it gently stroked my face.

"You will know pain Hiccup," the creature suddenly withdrew his hand, only to fling it forward to grab my face. I felt each bump in his knuckles as the grip grew tighter, every nail penetrating the top layer of my skin. Sneering at me, this creature threw me into the puddle from which he came, and darkness enveloped me.

I awoke with a loud thump on my bedroom floor, obviously I had rolled out of bed, no way did that have anything to do with me being thrown in my dream, impossible. But what was with that dream, I don't think I've dreamt about mum since she died, and that was only for about a week until I just had no dreams at all. Who was that weird figure I saw and why did he know my name? Well it was a dream, Hiccup, the laws of normality don't apply. Shaking my head vigorously and the wishing I hadn't, I looked over to the other side of my room and saw that Toothless was awake, and staring at me intently,

"What? Something wrong?" He just stared at me and then scuttled to his empty food bowl. Crap! I forgot to feed him last night!  
"Oh god, sorry boy!" I rushed to my feet and went straight to the draw where I kept Toothless's care items. Walking back over I poured a large amount of dried worms into the bowl. This seemed to please Toothless, who I swear tried to smile again, I wonder if that's a bearded dragon thing? Watching him for a minute, I became more sure my dear pet had a somewhat sadistic tendency. Toothless would bite the head of his food, spit it out and then slowly eat the body, making loud smacking sounds as he did so. Once he'd finished, he would look at the head for a moment, stare at me, and then hurriedly devour it in once quick bite.

My alarm suddenly went off and f my first instinct was to throw my slippers at it, at least I would if I owned a pair, so I settled by turning it off rather forcefully, glaring at it as if willing it to ring again.

After completing the mundane morning ritual of dressing myself, washing my face and brushing my teeth and hair, I descended to the living room. Low behold, Dad's watching television, again. Maybe if he stopped watching it for half the day we would have more money, and could actually afford something to eat.

"Hiccup! Great news! I managed to win a hundred loaves of bread! We'll be having some proper food for a while!" My Dad sounding more excited than usual, but it was nice to see he wasn't looking at me with a slight hint of disappointment.

"That's great Dad, when do they come?"

"This evening! Ooh I can taste it now!"  
His over-excited state made me laugh quietly, which visually shocked my Dad, I don't think I've ever laughed with him before. He turned round, probably to check if I was laughing with him or at him.

"God son, are you ok, you look like you haven't slept a wink last night."  
Wondering what on earth he was going on about, I looked towards the living room mirror. Wow, I had bags under my eyes that were practically as big as my eyes themselves.

I decided to lie to my Dad, right now was not a time to bring up mum and spoil his good mood, "Yeah, I'm fine Dad, just stayed up a bit too late reading."

"Alright son, but don't do that again, now time to go to school."  
"Yeah, bye Dad," grabbing yet another couple of apples, I ran out the door.

I felt bad about lying to Dad, but what else could I do, and I wasn't going to let this spoil the rest of my day. The ice had all miraculously melted today, I counted this as a blessing from God as there is hardly ever no ice here. Maybe today was going to be a good day. Huh, right. As soon as I stepped foot inside the school doors my hopes were shattered similarly to a bottle being dropped from Mount Everest's peak. A small, green water balloon hit me square in the face, encasing me in a casing of latex, which felt even weirder because of the liquid inside. It exploded in a loud bang, thoroughly soaking my hair and most of my upper body. Wiping my eyes clean of the water, I glared ahead of me,aAnd who was crouching in front of me, having just ducked that damned balloon? Just Jack frigging Frost; the boy gave me a sheepish smile and pointed ahead

of him.

"He threw it."

I looked to where he was pointing, and unfortunately for him, everyone else from the corridor had scuttled away back to their hovels.

"Heh, hey Hiccup, don't get mad," he chuckled nervously, straightening up and backing away from me.

"Don't hey me, of course I'm going to get mad., what the hell am I going to do now?" I took a couple of steps forward, to which Jack immediately responded by moving backwards, using my hands I gestured to my soaked body.

Jack's eyes fell to where I was referring to, and then he became quiet.

"Jack? You in there?"

"Huh, what, yeah?"

"I said what am I going to do now?"  
"Slowly dry off?"

That was just awful. Sighing, I dragged him down the corridor.

"Hey, what the hell?"  
"You're coming with me to the office to see if they have a hairdryer or something."  
"And this needs to people why?"  
"Because I want you to look like a jerk while I play the victim, you jerk."  
"Fine, fine, jerk."

I let go of him and we walked together to the main office, I noticed out the corner of my eye that Jack kept staring at my wet chest. Okay, one point for he's on my team.

"Hiccup, what on earth happened to you?" the lady behind the overly large desk questioned with genuine concern. Other than my mother, she's the only person who never treated me like a freak. I often sit in here and help her with any work she might be behind one, I suppose you could say we were friends, as much as a teacher and student can be anyway.

"He happened Miss Potts," I pointed to Jack who waved warily at her.

"You've been here not ten minutes and you're already causing trouble?"  
Jack sunk deep into his hoodie, was that the only thing he wore?

"I didn't throw it, I just ducked under it and it hit him."

"Hmm, well I'm sorry Hiccup but you're going to have to dry off with the toilet hand dryers."  
I groaned out loudly, everyone knows that the toilets are were the manly men hang around and smoke, because it's so unobvious when the whole room is smoke filled.

"But," she continued, "as it's you, you can use the teacher toilets to do it."  
She turned and pointed at Jack fiercely, "You help him."

We walked quickly to the teacher's bathroom.

"Come on, you can dry my top while I dry my hair."  
"Wait, you're gonna get undressed, here?"  
Point two for my team, "Yeah, why?"

"No reason."

We entered the toilet and I saw straight away that there was only one hand dryer. Great, that means that I'll have to sit topless while he dries my top. Why not just do it myself you ask? Well, I have to get my own back don't I?

"Well, come on, get started," I said, trying to sound authoritative as I took of my top and threw it at Jack's face. He stood there with it on his face for a second before he actually took it off and held it near the dryer.

"Come on Jack, we don't have all eternity." Seriously, dry off my clothes, you can fondle it later. Wait, no. No, you can't. He turned to stare at me again, his eyes surveying my body.

"You're seriously skinny dude, you need to eat a load of cake or something."

"Well, some of us can't afford to buy a load of cakes when we feel like it, now hurry up before someone walks in and gets the wrong idea?"  
"Maybe I want them to?"

"Huh, don't mumble." I swear he said something in reply, but that damned mumbling of his stopped me hearing it.

Jack didn't reply and just put my top under the dryer, checking every so often to see if it was dry yet.

"So what's your first lesson?" Why does he want to know that? He'll only forget me soon enough.

"First I have History with Ms Fritton, then English with Mr Hardacker, a free period, Art with Mrs Vysner and last I have Geography with Mr Hannah."

"Now way."

Sighing I looked over to him, wondering what could be so astonishing, "What's so wow about that?"  
"Well it's just that you're in all my lessons."

Crap.

History went by as quickly as it came, which is to say, at a snail's pace. I seriously wonder how Jack could know all that he does about History, yet still seem to make the lesson as boring as humanely possible. It was like after we left the bathroom he was just embarrassed to talk to me, or maybe he was just passionate about history. I mean, he did know a lot and didn't even react to the various girls flirting with him, instead just sitting by me and calmly taking notes. English was a different story however, Jack, yet again sitting by me, kept writing dirty rhymes up and passing them to me on a bit of paper.

One such went:

There once was a woman from Cue, Who filled her vagina with glue. She said with a grin, If they paid to get in, They'll pay to get out of it to.

And of course the teacher almost caught sight of it so I had to get rid of it the only way I saw possible; by eating it. Yes, that earned me some stares in class, Hiccup the paper eating kid that no-one likes.

"You could have just put it in your pocket, you didn't have to eat it." Jack whispered to me after I disposed of the evidence, "And don't worry, I can think of plenty more."  
That thought generally never occurred to me, now I felt utterly idiotic.

Right now we were just sitting in the common room for free period, me reading a book and Jack in the seat next to me looking at the paper, one of the few sights not blocked from us.

"Hey Hiccup, that Chris Pine is quite a catch isn't he?"

I looked up from my book, just when I got to the good part.

"He's ok, not anything special."  
"Oh come on, how can you not like him? He's ruggedly good looking."  
"You're only saying that because you sound slightly like him."

"Of course, us studs have to stick together!"

"Jack, did you just call yourself a stud?"  
"Yeah! You're really gonna tell me you don't find me attractive?"  
I suddenly became tounge-tied, "Well, erm, that is to say, erh."  
Jack burst into a giggling fit at my growing embarrassment, attracting the attention of a few other students, girls gave me dirty looks out of jealousy for me being with Jack, and guys just because they generally don't like me.

"Hey, look at this, world's worst plastic surgery operations, oh, and there's a graphic image warning, cool."

Turning back around I saw Jack had brought up a picture of someone who only slightly resembled a human.

"Hey Hiccup, it's you!"

Oh, I will get him back for that, "Yeah well type in egg head, whatever the second picture is looks like you."  
He did as I said and luckily for me the second picture along was a man with an unfortunately shaped head.

"Well that's not nice Hic," he tried to make me feel slightly guilty by putting on his best puppy dog eyes. I heard a girl behind me sigh, but I won't lose out to him, no matter how cute a face he makes.

"Not gonna work Jack."  
"What if I do this?"

He laid his head on my lap, almost crushing my book, and pulled yet another puppy dog face. Stretching out, he pretended to fall asleep on me.

"Jack get up."

No response. I leant in as close as I could and whispered, hoping it would be scarier than shouting, "Jack if you don't get up, you'll be hurting for days."  
He opened one eye slowly, "Ooh, yes please sir."

Right that's it, I decided to teach him not to think of me as his personal play thing. I contemplated pouring water over him, but then I would look like I peed myself, so I had a better idea. Checking to see if he was still asleep, I placed my foot on the side of his chair leg. Mustering all my strength, I gave one hard kick and... nothing.

"Well, that was impressive," Jack said from my lap, not even opening his eyes.

"Shut up, it's not my fault you're too heavy."  
"You mean you're too weak."  
"Whatever, you think I'm this weak out of choice?"

Yet again no reply, but his face seemed more concentrated this time, as if my words caused him to think.

We remained in that position until the end of the period. I couldn't tell if the looks we were getting were because of the fact there was an egg headed man on Jack's screen or the fact he was lying on my lap, most likely a combination of both. Why was he doing this, and not feeling a shred of embarrassment, if anything he should be the one getting shy, I mean, he's the one lying on me. Yet, I'm the one feeling bashful, I hate this feeling.

As the bell rang I shook Jack, "Come one, out Art room is the room to the left of us."

"But I wanna stay here!"  
"Fine, get off my lap so I can go to lesson and I'll give you the chair to rest on. Have fun in detention for bunking off"  
He opened his eyes slowly , "You know what I mean, you'll just have to stay with me."  
"I know what you mean, doesn't mean I'm going to give it to you, and hell no."

Sighing he rolled of my lap with the grace of a Hippopotamus, landing on his feet with a mighty thud, amplified by the wooden flooring of the room. We walked into the room and I put my stuff down at my desk.

"You'll have to catch up quickly, Art isn't like other lessons, your given a brief outline of what to do but other than that it's all independent."  
"Ah, that's fine, I can work better without a teacher."  
I scoffed, "that's not what it looked like I History."

"Yes, well that's different."  
"How is it different in anyway?"  
"Because it just is." Wow, Jack truly is a master of articulation.

I walked to the other side of the room, ending up in front of an aged easel protected by a simple grey cloth, unwrapping it, my pride and joy was revealed. A watercolour painting of a blue-ish dragon was proudly displayed on the canvas. Its large green eyes were complemented by the slight red tinge I had applied to the evening sky. Each painfully place stroke of the brush added to the effect of weightlessness and freedom.

"Wow, Hiccup, it's amazing."

"Thanks, it's taken nearly two months, I haven't done anything else in this class."

"You must be really behind then."  
"Ah, it's nothing I can't catch up on."

I didn't pay attention to Jack for a while after that, instead becoming lost in creating each individual scale on my masterpiece. Trying to capture how the light reflects on a creature that doesn't even exist is really quiet hard. And when I say quiet, I mean extremely. Still, when I paint or draw, I feel at peace. It's as if I can escape into my own world, where I control each and every aspect, with my paint brush being the tool of my trade and every stroke brining a new concept to life.

It wasn't until we had ten minutes left until the end that I turned around, searching for the unusually quiet white haired boy. However, I did not expect to see what I saw. Jack had created a very Bridget Riley-esque optical illusion art piece. It appeared as if multiple black and white ringed tendrils were all descending on a single point in the middle of the page. Regardless of it's unfinished state, it looked very effective.

"Wow Jack, I never took you for an artist, how did you learn to draw optical art so well?" He turned and gave me that familiar smile.

"I dunno, it's just all about perspective, and then distorting that perspective." I looked over the drawing again, taking in how truly great it was, then he continued, iIf anything, I never expected you to be, I mean you're not a very emotional person."

A simple thank you would have sufficed, "anyway, we've gotta pack up now if we want to get to last lesson on time."

"What, it's not lunch next?"

"No, it goes first period 8:30, second 9:30, break 10;30, third 11:00, fourth 12:00 and fifth lasts from 13:00 to 13:30, then we can have lunch or go home for lunch."

"Well that's a weird system, why not have lunch for half an hour than another hour lesson?"  
"Who knows, maybe it's because the teachers want to go home early too."

"Ha, yeah, not even they can stand staying here for too long."

We began packing up our own mess, me putting my painting back under its cover and Jack put his sketch in a drawer.

"Are you sure it will be safe in there?"

"Yeah, it'll be fine, come on, let's get this over with."

And so we walked off to geography.

Geography was an unexpected surprise for me, Jack proved to actually be very interested in how the weather winter weather worked, even shushing me when I tried to ask for a rubber, of course that earned him a kick.

When asked by the teacher for examples of extreme weather, he went on and on about blizzards and anti-cyclones and their formations, looking as if he wanted to be in one of the two right then and there.

"Jack, why are you so in love with winter?" I couldn't understand it no matter how hard I tried, maybe because of my accident prone self always slipping on ice.

"Well, there's nothing quite like a crisp winter morning, or the first snow fall of the year." H paused in thought before looking at me, "And I met you in winter too."

I involuntarily blushed a deep shade of scarlet, much to the amusement of Jack.

"I take it your blush means you feel the same then?"  
"Like hell it does. You just... just... just caught me off guard, that's all."  
"You're lying, you stutter when you lie."

How did he notice that already, after only one day? I don't even remember lying too much today either, maybe he paid more attention to me than I originally thought.

"So now then class, your assignment for homework is to research what an La Nina is and how it works," says the teacher, lack any sort of conviction as most of the class completely disregard him.

"So Hiccup are you staying for lunch or going home?"

"I have to stay for lunch, it's the only way I get a good meal, on weekends I don't even get that."

"Wow, you need to come back to my place, I have too much food for me alone. Hey, I could take you now!"

Subtle Jack, really subtle, but the sound of a good meal is very tempting.

"Okay then Frost boy, but you better keep your promise of there being lots of food."

"When have I ever lied Hiccup?"  
"Well for one, when you told Astrid we were dating." He cringed at this, maybe I should have chosen another example. Regardless, his cheerful demeanour soon returned, "Well play your cards right, and that might not be a lie!"

Oh, this guy needs to get off his high horse.

We walked out the school doors and passed some girls, who apparently had been struck by cupid's arrow, cooing incessantly over Jack as soon as they saw him.

Multiple loud whispers were clearly audible, such as, "He's so hot," and "why's he with Hiccup?"

Was Jack really that attractive? Looking up at his face I suppose I could see where they were coming from, he certainly wasn't unattractive.

Jack obviously heard the girl's infatuated ramblings and stopped in his tracks.

"Sorry girls, I'm taken," he announced proudly, grabbing me by the waste and pulling me near him.

The looks on the girl's faces were priceless, so much so that I didn't really care that they walked off saying multiple bad things about me.

What did slightly aggravate me was when Jack's hand was steadily getting lower.

"Hands above the waste if you please, handsome," great there's that stupid voice again.

"Or better yet, hands off all together," Ok, that was an unexpected voice.

Turning I saw Astrid, which didn't surprise me, that she-devil had a very distinctive croaking to her, but the other voice, it belonged to Snotface Snotlout, yeah I thought I had a bad name too until he came along. What made matters worse was the fact this pudgy, pug faced boy was my cousin. His hair was long and a dark bronw, with eyebrows which were just as hairy as the top of his head. His nose was more of a pig snout than anything, obviously the inspiration behind his name. I'm glad I never inherited that trait, I like my nose as it is, thanks very much. In short we were two sides of the coin, everything I lacked, like stupidity and violent tendencies, Snotface made up for in spades.

"Doll face, finally get a boyfriend did you? Lucky he looks just like your personality, crap," Jack quickly snapped at the two of them.

"Oh shut it, twiggy, one flick from me and you'd break in two," Snotlout challenged arrogantly, thinking with his fists before his hands as always.

"Jack we don't have time for this, I'm starving," I tugged on his hoodie, trying to get his attention of the two jerks behind us.

He looked at me,, "Fine, but next time, I gonna smack him in his dog face," he turned back to the others, "Doll face, it's been horrible as always."

We walked around to the back of the school to where the car park was, ignoring the calls and challenges from the obnoxious boy and girl. Getting the car started Jack turned to me.

"Hungry?"  
I smiled at him, "famished."

**A/N **

**Hoped you liked it and I didn't bore you half to death! :)**


	4. Dancing, Kimichi and a House Tour

We enter Jack's flat about half an hour later, and I must say, it wasn't what I was expecting at all. No messy clothes strung all over the place, no food containers glued to the ceiling, and no sign of any vermin, well if you don't count his Rabbit as vermin. No the room was immaculately clean, meticulously so. I stood in the doorway fiddling with my thumbs, having never been invited to anyone's house before I had no idea what I was supposed to do now. Do I wait until he invites me in, or do I make myself at home?

Apparently, Jack had nothing so courteous in mind, pushing me into the room, "Come one Hic, I'd like to get in too."

I looked around the living room as I slipped of my shoes and shoes and gave them to Jack, who took them to his room. It was quite a minimalistic home, the mentioned small, white sofa was opposite an average sized television that was mounted on top of a cabinet that held multiple DVDs that were clouded by the opaque glass, upon the blue wall hung a single picture of a winter scene, figure he'd have something like that. The photo showed a lake surrounded by snow, illuminated by the night sky which held the aurora borealis, looking majestic as it always does. I quickly got my phone out my pocket and gave my Dad a quick text about where I was, not that he'd really notice if I was just a little later than usual.

Jack entered the room, kicking of his shoes and lying on the cream carpet, placing his feet on the sofa.

"Ya know, it might just be me, but I think you're supposed to be the other way around?"

He looked at me quizzically, the just wriggled his toes, "don't try and hide it, I know you love my feet really."  
"Yeah, because your feet are such great works of art from you not wearing socks at all."

Jack didn't respond, instead just going over to a closed door, then turning to look at me expectantly.

"You coming, I promised you food didn't I?"  
Well, if you told me to go with you I would, that room could have been the toilet for all I know.

I neared the room with my eyes closed, not really expecting much if the rest of the flat was consistent with the living room. Boy was I wrong. There was a beautiful oak counter in the centre of the room, around which multiple stools were situated, a fruit basket placed in the middle. Across from that there was a gargantuan fridge, holding God knows how many luxury food items, with many more probably held within the cupboards that were scattered across the room.

Setting my foot on the tile, my toes instantly felt the chill from the cool surface, how did Jack walk on them with bare feet? Perhaps he's a mutant of some sort, one with specially adapted feet. Following him further inside, he chucked a few things on the counter from the fridge and freezer. Reading the packaging I could see he had gotten out rice, chicken, naam bread and a jar of tikka sauce. I guess he's making Chicken Tikka Masala then. I've never had it before, I've only seen it on one of the programmes my Dad once watched, he soon turned it off as it seemed more like torture than entertainment when your watching people eat such delicacies.

I watch him prepare the food intently, listening to the rice boil away, and the chicken slowly cook in the sauce. I have to admit, it smelt a lot better than I imagined it would. Heaping a big portion onto a plate, Jack placed it down proudly in front of me.

"Grubs up, I bet this will be the most filled you'll ever be," he said as he turned away to get himself his own, more average sized portion. Much to his astonishment, when he turned back around towards me, I had already half finished my meal. The sauce held a mild flavouring to it, not spicy, but still having a bit of a kick to it. I scooped up a large portion of chicken and rice and put it in my mouth along with a large bite of naam bread. I only stopped when I noticed Jack was looking at me like I just killed a new born baby.

"Heh, seconds please?" I tentatively held out my now empty plate, feeling a bit like Oliver Twist.

Taking my plate Jack spoke up, "Wow, I knew I was a good cook, but not that I was that good!"

I decided not to mention the fact that it was because of the fact I rarely ever had such a good amount of food before, I mean the meal was delicious and he controls whether or not I get anymore.

"So," I took another large mouthful of food, "Can you cook anything else?"  
"Oh yeah, I'm quite the chef, well, not anything great actually, but I'm obviously not half bad!"

"How do you even afford all this if you live alone?"  
"You remember I mentioned my parents have busy jobs?"  
I nodded, I remember, but he never said what they actually did for a living.

"Well, those jobs are also well paying, so they send me a large amount of money each week to buy food and any other things I want."  
It must be nice to be able to buy whatever you want, whenever you want and never have to worry about whether or not you will run out of money.

"Oh, stay here a minute, there's someone I want you to meet."  
"I thought you lived alone?"  
"Well that's not entirely true."

I waited for a few minutes before I heard the patter of Jack's feet signal his return, I didn't turn round though, I was too entranced by my meal.

"Hiccup, meet Bunnymund."  
I turned around, swivelling the stool to get a better view. Bad idea, a large grey rabbit was held less than an inch away from my face, his whisker's tickling my nose. The sensation got too much and I abruptly sneezed on the poor creature, who proceeded to sharpen its already small green eyes, as if to say how much it now hated me.

"Isn't he so cute?" Jack squealed as he set the rabbit down on the floor. I don't know what he was hoping for it to do, but it scuttled out of the room the first chance that it got.

"Is he going to be ok running around like that?"  
"Yeah, he'll probably just go under the sofa like he usually does," he replied with a soft laugh, I'm guessing something funny happened one time that rabbit got under the sofa.

We returned to the living room and Jack gestured me over to another closed door, if whatever is behind this one can beat the kitchen, I might have to consider convincing Jack to let me move in with him, and something told me that wouldn't be a difficult task.

"Prepare for the greatest thing your cute little eyes will ever see."

"My eyes are cute are they?"

Ignoring me, Jack swung open the door dramatically, standing to the side to reveal... a dark room... great.

"Um, what's so special about a dark cupboard?"  
Jack just laughed at me and flicked a light switch near the door way, "Watch."

The lights immediately brightened the room, without so much as a stutter like my ones back home, instead revealing rows upon rows of ceiling high shelves, each one holding loads of... CDs?

With my mouth agape, I walked down the aisle, recognising a few of the artists and bands. Some I thought were quite like Jack to listen to, there were multiple Fall Out Boy, Michael Jackson, Maroon Five, The Killers and Muse albums, but there were some that surprised me, like Plumb, P!nk, Evanescence, Marilyn Manson, Adam Lambert and Flyleaf.

"This is, wow, this is quite a collection, how long did this take you to collect?"

"Oooh, about thirteen years. Every CD I have ever owned is in here, even if I don't really listen to it anymore, you never know when you'll want to listen to it again."

"Can we play a couple?"

"Yeah, sure, pick whatever you like and we'll put them in the DVD player."

He turned and went to go prepare the player, but stopped when he got to the doorway.

"No wait, I have a much better idea, pick some more upbeat-y ones, I'll be back in a second."

And with that he ran from the room, leaving me to somehow know which ones were upbeat or not.

About five minutes later I was lying on the sofa looking at the ceiling, I could hear Jack in what I assumed was his bedroom rummaging through his things looking for "That piece of crap." He returned a second later, his hair ruffled in many directions and his clothes looking slightly roughed. He was holding to large mats with cables attached to them.

"Find some good ones?" he asked me, placing the mats on the floor. There was no doubt he wanted to see my definition of 'upbeat'.

I spread out the CDs revealing Adam Lambert, Lady Gaga, P!nk, Pixie lott, Pendulum, The Prdigy and Simon Curtis. I didn't really know what I was choosing so I grabbed one from each shelf, still Jack looked satisfied enough.

"Good choice, let's go with Simon Curtis first."

He inserted the CD into the player, paused it, then plugged in the mats.

"I had these specially made so that they responded to the beat of the music," he unfolded the mats and I now saw that they had arrows on them, each large enough for a foot to go on, with room to spare.

"Wait, these aren't for what I think they are, are they?"

"Well, if you think they're for dancing, then yes, you're right."  
"Jack I'm not dancing with you."  
"Oh come on, you scared you'll lose, chicken?"

"No."  
"Chicken."  
"Am not."

"Are too."

"Am not."

"Are too."

"Am not."

"Are too."

"Fine! I'll play the god damn game, but don't be sad when I whip your arse!"

Smiling smugly now that he had his way, Jack told me the basics of what to do, just saying when an arrow came up on the screen you stepped on that arrow, and the closer you were to when it crossed a line of arrows, the more points you get.

The music blared from the speakers, and the arrows quickly scrolled up the screen.

"Time to round them up  
And tell them where we're gonna go  
If they don't know how to work it  
Then I'll leave them at the door  
Gotta make it to the center of the circle, grab my hand  
Tell the DJ drop the beat  
Don't play some motherfuckin' band"

I was completely out of time with the arrows, my legs failing to step on the arrows at the correct times, I even lost my balance at one point, Jack however, no, Jack was more or less in sync, not perfect, but in sync. No failing arms or misplaced legs, just roughly precise movements, making him look quite experienced, I bet he planned for this.

"What was that about kicking my arse?"

"Just wait Frost, I'm still just a beginner at this!"

The music continued, and I unfortunately had not bite to back up my bark.

"So give it to me baby  
Tell me, what's it gonna be?  
Gonna give it to me dirty  
Out where everybody sees  
'Cause I can't do nothing with you  
If you're never gonna dance  
So you better find some rhythm  
'Cause they're playing Bad Romance  
(Want your Bad Romance)"

When the song finished Jack had scored 96% of the arrows, while I scored a measly 42.

"So, wanna go again?"

"Fine, but this time I'm choosing the song, got it?"

"Fine wth me, but do you know any of these songs anyway?"  
"I know one of the ones on this CD, so this time I'll definitely beat you!"

"Yeah because that worked out so well last time."

I picked up the CD and skipped to the appropriate number song, the vocals were more slow, hopefully that would throw Jack off.

"Interesting choice."  
"You better pay attention, Frost boy," I said, noticing I was starting to get the hang of the game, scoring much more arrows than the previous time, I always was a quick leaner.

"Arriving just in Time.  
Whose dying to be mine?  
Let me survey the scene  
good fight, now keep it clean!  
How will this evening go?  
Two lips to crack the code  
Then now above them all  
I hear the silence call"

Jack was obviously noticing my success as his amount was falling, most likely from watching me to see if I made any mistakes rather than his own screen, causing him points. Left, right, forwards, right, backwards, amost every arrow was a excellent or perfect.

"Melodic, erotic, hypnotic hold on me.  
Captivated by your sexuality  
Yeah, don't back up now, feel the rhythm of two  
We can go all night to this hypnotic groove  
It's a melodic, erotic, hypnotic kind of dance  
The way the music controls you and the touch of your hand  
Mesmerized by your eyes and the way you move  
We can dance all night to this hypnotic groove  
It's your melodic, erotic, hypnotic hold on me.  
Captivated by your sexuality  
Yeah, don't back up now, feel the rhythm of two  
We can go all night to this hypnotic groove."

The song finished and I landed the last arrow perfectly, even adding a spin just to show off. But whether or not I had actually won or not had yet to be seen.

"Show off," Jack said, rolling his eyes at me dramatically.

"Pot and kettle."

We stopped talking as our scores started to be calculated. The numbers were rising, 40, 50, 60, 70%, they just kept going. Finally the both started to slow at the same time, this meant we were much closer this time. 89, 90, 91,92, stop. Wait, what did Jack get?

Looking over at his side of the screen I saw his number. 91. Ha, I scored 1% more than him? That had to sting, it's one thing when someone's miles better than you, but one percent is much worse. It means they were just that little bit better, and you could have beaten them if you just tried a bit harder.

"So, how about we call it a drawer?"

"Of course you'd want to call it a draw, you can't stand the thought of losing to me again."  
"Truthfully, no, I probably couldn't, but then again, seeing you dance was much better the second time."  
Oh, so it wasn't that he wasn't trying as hard, Jack was... watching me?

Jack went to the fridge and came back, holding a tray full of bottles and two glasses upon his return.

"Ever had one of these before?" what even are these?

"And these are?"

"Rum, we're gonna mix it with some coke, I've never tried it, but it's supposed to be great."  
"We are talking the coke drink right?"

He looked at me and scoffed, "Of course, do you really think I'm a druggy?" He returned to the kitchen and came back with a large bottle of the fizzy drink.

"Well I don't know, you act pretty weird sometimes," I said giving his elbow a light push with mine as he sat next to me.

"Maybe it's just because you're too normal, and that's actually pretty weird."  
"So I'm normal, but because I'm normal, I'm more weird than a weird person?"  
"Yep"  
"Wow, that's great logic Jack."

Lifting my now filled glass to my lips I let the drink slide down my throat.

"So how does it taste?"  
I coughed slightly, definitely tasting the rum, "Sweet, nice, but sweet."

Taking this as a sign that the concoction was safe to drink, Jack too lifted his glass to his lips, drinking his slowly.

Lowering it, he showed a look of appreciation, "Well, you're right about the sweet part," it came out as more of a strangled noise than a statement.

We drank for a while longer, which resulted in me becoming intoxicated quiet quickly

"Hic, I think you've had enough for now."

"Ahh, shush, yooo don't know WHAT!... You're talking aboot."

"Wow, so you're really such a light weight, funny figured you'd be able to hold you're liquor."  
Laughing drunkenly, I reached for more rum, falling of the sofa in the process. I laid there for about a minute before I heard Jack talk again.

"Are you gonna get up or what?"  
For some reason I found this absolutely hilarious and went into hysterics.

"Oh Jack, you're sooo funny, this is why I like you!"

Standing up, Jack picked me up onto his shoulder, "That's it you're going to sleep this off right now, and if you have a hangover in the morning, don't blame me."

Jack placed me in his bed, which was overly large for a boy who lived by himself, but I suppose if you had the money, why not? Multiple childlike, gurgling noises escaped my lips as he pulled my top over my head and after I laid down, the covers were pulled under my chin.

He leant down and kissed my forehead softly, "Goodnight Hiccup," and then walked to the other side of the room. My eyes began to feel heavy from the combination of alcohol and the warmth of Jack's bed, and I was soon enveloped by sleep once more.

I awoke to a groggy head and a warm feeling in front of me, it held a familiar smell that was inviting and comforting. Opening my eyes I found out it was no such thing. It was Jack's foot. Clutching my aching head I saw that Jack had crawled in with me, but I had somehow got out the covers and ended up down the opposite end of the bed. Was it a bad dream again? I don't remember one, in fact I don't remember any dream at all.

I slowly crawled back up to correct end of the bed, hoping not to wake Jack up. He looked so peaceful when we was sleeping, as if he was an angel. His white hair hung just below his eyes and spread out over the pillow, making it look much bigger than it really was. Yet, of course as this was Jack, as if he was designed to prove me wrong, he let out a strange mixture of snoring and mumbling, breaking his peaceful appearance.

"Hmm, Hiccup."

Ok, was he calling to me, or is he dreaming about me? If he was calling to me, he'll do so again when I don't reply. So that's what I did, and as I thought, he didn't say my name again.

I looked over to the clock, and suddenly realised what had happened; I had stayed out all night without letting my Dad know. I could have been mugged for he knows.

"Crap!" I exclaimed, apparently a bit too loudly, as I rummaged through my bag to find my phone, waking Jack in the process.

"The general term is good morning but that works too." He said sleepily, rolling to face me, still under the covers.

"Well, sorry, but my Dad has no idea where I am, he may not notice if I come home late, but he definitely will if I don't come home at all! What the hell am I going to tell him? Argh, then he's going to give me that look he always does"  
"Um, actually, he does, I used your phone to tell him last night before I came to bed, I am somewhat responsible you know, also he wanted me to tell you a load of bread loaves had arrived?"

"Oh, thanks, sorry I woke you for nothing."  
"Nah, it's okay"," He sighed, "What look does he give you?"  
"A look of just general disappointment, like he either wanted a masculine son, or a girly girl, not a mixture of the two."  
"Hiccup, you're not a mixture of a boy and girl," he paused and then carried on, "Unless you wanna be, because that's all good too. Point is you're you, and you shouldn't change that."

I began to feel an increasing tingling feeling inside as he continued.

I sighed and looked at the ceiling in relief; at least Dad knew where I was, even if he would probably quiz me about it when I got home, I just hope Jack didn't imply anything. When I looked back down Jack had straightened up and was in the middle of stretching, revealing the fact that I was not the only one with no top on. My face heated up significantly, signalling that I was involuntarily blushing. Jack was always slim, but unlike me, it was a healthy form of slim. It was really quite attractive to be perfectly honest.

I shook my head, snapping out of my daze, "Jack, just to make sure, we didn't do anything... weird last night right?"

"Depends on what you define as weird."  
That was not helpful, in fact it just made me worry even more.

He sighed yet again, "but, no. We didn't do anything, unlike you I can hold my drink, and not become a total blabber mouth, saying anything that's in my head at anytime."  
Oh God, what did I say to him last night? I decided not to pry, I really didn't want to have this conversation right now when I myself was not sure of the answer, hopefully I haven't given him false ideas about my feelings towards him.

Looking around trying to avoid staring any more at Jack's chest, my eyes fell to the clock. It was nine o'clock, I had slept in later than I usually do, I must have really drunk a lot last night. Wait a minute, nine o'clock?

"Jack! We're an hour late for school!" I hurriedly grabbed my top from its place on the floor and slid it over my shoulders, turning back to the boy to give him a quizzical look as to why he has yet to move.  
This caused him to laugh loudly for a good minute, "Hic, I think you're still a bit drunk this morning, it's a Saturday today!"

I felt my eyebrow twitch as I froze in the doorway, to be perfectly honest, I looked a bit like a cartoon character.

About twenty minutes later, I was dressed, washed and watching Jack prepare breakfast. I wanted to help, but he cooks so well and I, well I've never cooked at all. Besides too many cooks spoils the soup and all that.

"Um, Jack, don't take this the wrong way, but... what are you making?"

"Well, I thought that as you were here, you can test a new breakfast meal I'm trying to make, it's called Kimichi, a Korean dish potent dish of fermented vegetables, with an added kick of garlic, red peppers and ginger."

"So, to put it bluntly, I'm your guinea pig then?"

"Well, if you wanna put it that way, then yes, you are."  
I gave him a look, showing him I clearly wasn't amused.

"What? You need to eat more food types, and I want to know what it tastes like without having to taste it if it's horrible."

My look just hardened, but he was right, I did need to eat different foods. Relenting, I let him set the dish in front of me. It was odd, that's really the only word to describe it. There appeared to be chicken, covered in a orange, viscous sauce, and surrounded by different coloured vegetables.

"Are you sure this is breakfast?"  
"Positive," he declared bluntly.

Lifting a spoonful to my lips, Jack's eyes grew to the size of saucers and twinkled like a winter star. He leaned in the closer the utensil got to my mouth.

"Go on, go on, put it in-" I abruptly shoved the spoon into his mouth before he could utter another word.

"So? Is it good?" I inquire, giving him a triumphant smirk.

Once he got over the shock of having something shoved down his throat, he slowly started to chew. For all of three seconds he just stood there, opening and closing his mouth, until he finally took my bowl, scooped up another spoonful, and chucked it in the bin. Hurriedly he poured the rest in along with it.

"That bad?"

"You did that on purpose."

"Obviously."

After brushing his teeth for the twelfth time, Jack entered the living room, where I was lying on the sofa.

"Make yourself at home why don't ya?"  
"Ok, thanks for allowing me."  
Giving an exasperated look, Jack just turned towards the show I was watching. After staring at it for a minute he finally spoke up, "Hiccup, what are you actually watching? Because it looks like a porno."

"I don't actually know, it was meant to be Spartacus, but I thought it would be about him, not his sex life."

"Well, how long have you been watching it?"  
"Hmm, about half an hour." The look he gave me was a mixture of surprise and humour.

"So it can't be all that bad then," he spoke, sitting on my legs which were didn't even reach the end of the small sofa.

We carried on watching it until the end, often giggling like children whenever a sex scene came on.

At about eleven o'clock, Jack agreed to take me home. We arrived at the front of my house about thirty minutes later. He looked at the front of my house, taking in the half dead ivy that was devouring most of the left side, how the brick work was shoddy, some being at completely different heights to the rest of its row, and mostly how the life seemed to be sucked from your body as you gazed upon it. Jack visibly disliked the look of the house, I was debating if he was at the point of repulsion, or just mass dislike.

"Well, it's... unique, I'll give it that."

"Jack don't try and cover up how much you don't like it, just say it."

"No, really, it's... different."

I could tell he was trying to spare my feelings, but he was doing an absolutely horrible job at it. Through the window, I could see the T.V was flickering away, with Dad in front of it, as always.

"So, I'm ready to meet famous Stoic I've heard so little about."

"Well, I'm sorry I know as much about my Dad as you do," it came out a bit too sharp and blunt, but it still had the desired effect, Jack tensed and looked at me sheepishly, regretting that he had said anything.

"It's fine Jack, you might as well come in now that you're here. I warn you though, it's just as bad on the inside."

Once we were inside, I called out for my Dad, "Dad, I'm home!"

No reply, just silence.

"Dad?" Where was he?

"Um, Hiccup?" I turned to look at Jack who was pointing at something, a note. It was a little post-it note stuck down to the table.

Picking it up Jack read it out to me, "Hiccup, I've gone out to find a T.V repair man, I can't seem to turn it off, the bread is in the cupboard and under the stairs. Don't do anything stupid. Please. Dad."

Jack's tone was questioning as he read the note out, clearly noticing the awkward feel of it all.

"Hasn't he tried unplugging it and plugging it back in?"

"My Dad may spend most of the day in front of the T.V, but he doesn't actually know anything about it, I think I even know more than him."

Jack walked over behind the T.V, pulled out the plug, and then plugged it back in, flicking through some channels to check everything worked as normal.

"Well, Dad will like you straight away," Dad loves anyone who can make stuff work for him, as it will save him paying someone to do it.

"Well of course he will, everyone does!"

"Huh, arrogant much?"

"Nope, just truth. So are you gonna give me the grand tour or what?"

"Um ok, well this is the living room, that hovel behind us is the kitchen, the toilet is behind that door, bathroom is the first room in front of the stairs and my room is second from the right, first is my Dad's."

"No, I mean actually take me round! I wanna see the whole thing."

"Really, can't you just look around by yourself, you won't find anything interesting."

Jack relented and wandered around the house by himself, the only rule was that he couldn't go into my Dad's room, for obvious reasons. Sitting down on the slightly cool sofa, could hear him walking into each room, the noise echoed by the wooden floorboards. He would take a quick look around and then quickly walk to whichever room was next. I could just imagine the look on his face as he entered each new pit, full of repulsion and antipathy.

The only room he stayed in longer than thirty seconds was my room, and the only reason I know that was because he stepped on the one creaky floorboard right in front of the doorway. I hoped he stayed in there for a good reason, not to just judge me. There isn't much in there apart from Toothless, so I don't know what he's actually doing.

"Cool you have a Bearded Dragon, I always wanted one of these when I was younger!"

Yep, I don't think he's judging it anymore. I should probably tell him not to poke his fingers through the cage, Toothless can-

"OW!"

-Bite if he's not yet used to you, as Jack has now found out the hard way.

Just after Jack's unfortunate mishap, who should come home but the Lord of the manor himself, my Dad.

"Oh, Hiccup, you're back," Thanks for sounding so enthusiastic, "and you fixed the T.V!"

Oh sure, you get happy over your precious baby.

Sighing, I turned to face him, my discontentment clearly readable on my face, "Hey Dad, you don't need to find anyone for the television anymore."

"Good thing too, that would cost a pretty penny."

Yeah, a pretty penny that could be spent on food, you un-prioritised twit. Anyway, what was Jack doing why was he being so quiet, it was his idea to me my Dad in the first place. Maybe he's having second thoughts and doesn't want to meet him, after all, I haven't exactly portrayed my Dad as an overly cheery soul.

I looked up at the stairs curiously, which my Dad didn't fail to notice, giving me a questioning look.

"Hiccup? Is there something you want to tell me?"

"Huh? What no... no there's... there's nothing Dad."

He just gave me an disbelieving look, damn stuttering.

"Hiccup, you're stuttering, you know you're an awful liar, why bother," he marched to the top of the stairs, me following close behind him, trying desperately to get in front of him.

"Dad, I'm... I'm telling you, there's no-one here!"

"I never asked if someone was here Hiccup. And if that's true, you won't mind me checking your room then, will you."

The first chance I got, I quickly ran in front of my door and pressed my body against the hard wood, sadly I failied to cover much space with my skinny frame.

"Hiccup, move out the way," my Dad commanded, pushing me out the way by my face with his large paws.

I held my breath as the door opened it what felt like slow motion, revealing... nothing at all, no Jack, absolutely nothing out of the ordinary. My bed was still as neat as when it was made the last time I was here, my window still open, and my belongings all in their place. Even Toothless was asleep, so that left one thing, where was Jack?

I couldn't let my Dad see my confusion, so I used the moment to my advantage, "See Dad, no-one here," luckily I didn't stutter, because as far as I know, Jack isn't actually in here.

"Then why were you blocking the door, or at least trying to block it anyway."

"I just didn't want you to make a fool of yourself." Again I didn't stutter, as right now I really don't want him to feel the fool, he always sulks tremendously when he does.

Still not believing me, Dad surveyed the room. After checking under my bed and in the wardrobe my Dad stood in the doorway, "Fine, but Hiccup, don't fall for this boy any further."  
"What?"

"Ever since you met him, you've been different, more unfocused, now, I'm not exactly sure, but knowing you, it's probably because you have a crush on him."  
Gee, the way he said that you'd think I'm a promiscuous tart or something of the like.

"What I'm saying is, just be careful ok?" And with that he left the room.

_**Ok I have decided, next chapter there will be... *cue dramatic drum roll* actual Hijack Feelings! I know! I figured if i didn't include at least them acting on their feeelings of attraction then people might get bored, I mean thatn is what you all came here for, and from a fanboy to any other fangirl/boys, I know how much we all need our favourite pairings to be together XD.**_


	5. What happened to mother?

Oh god, I hope Jack didn't hear any of that. Speaking of him, where is he? He's not in the wardrobe or under the bed, which was where I honestly expected to find him, so where? That's when I heard it, a strange groaning noise coming from somewhere nearby, it sounded like someone was struggling to hold on to something.

Looking to the window, realisation dawned on me, "Oh he didn't," I heard it again, "Yes, he did."

I marched hurriedly to the window to find out exactly what the noise was, and as expected, there's Jack, clinging to a pole while trying to keep his footing on a jutting out brick. It was quite a comical sight. Hey, he's not that high up, it's okay for me to say that.

"So, how's it hanging?"

"Oh ha dee ha ha, very original. And FYI I'm not hanging, I'm clinging."

"Well, if you're cocky enough to talk back, you obviously don't need my help," I teased motioning to close my window.

"Hiccup, you close that window, I swear I will never talk to you again!"

"Oh joy, a quiet day for me then," I claimed as I grabbed his outstretched hand, not that y pulling did any good, he still made all the effort in pulling himself inside.

"Don't lie Hiccup, I know for a fact that you couldn't live one day without me," his face was cocky and confident as usual, but his eyes held a sadden gleam to them, I had the worst feeling he had heard what Dad said.

I pushed the feeling to the back of my mind, there was no time to worry about that now. The real problem was how to get Jack out of here when I had just convinced my Dad no-one was here in the first place.

Actually that reminds me, "Jack, why didn't you come down? It was your idea to meet my Dad, then I thought you regretted it and tried to cover for you."  
"Well I did actually, I overheard that you and your Dad were talking and so I didn't wanna interrupt, but then when he asked if I was here, he didn't exactly sound welcome or pleased about the possibility so I hung out the window so you wouldn't get in trouble and I wouldn't get killed. I didn't do it for fun, obviously."  
He stressed the last word, the word I was so very fond of. But I must admit, I felt very appreciative that he went through the trouble of hanging out a dangerous window for me.

"Thanks Jack, it means a lot."  
"I know Hiccup, I know."

We spent the next ten minute devising ways to escape the house without Dad spotting his unwelcomed visitor. Each and every way failed, so in the end we just sat there, Jack staring off into space while I stroked Toothless. I hadn't done this for a while, stroke my pet I mean, not sneak boys out of my house. It felt nice and was somewhat relaxing in this situation, and from the contented look on Toothless's scaly face, he thought so too. My finger ran over each dry scale, feeling every dip and bump in its surface. I tickled the soft, leathery under section of his neck, feeling his throat vibrate in appreciation.

It went like that for a few more minutes before Jack stood and walked slowly over to the window. He turned to me opening and closing his mouth, seemingly having trouble trying to say whatever he was going to say. That didn't exactly make me feel confident about the upcoming conversation.

"Jack? Is there something wrong?" I felt like face palming myself, if there was nothing wrong, he wouldn't be having so much trouble in spitting it out.

"Hiccup, I, erm, I overheard what you and your Dad were, erm, talking about." His voice wavered, growing more to a soft whisper towards the end of the sentence.  
I looked up, not understanding what he was talking about, "I know you told me, that's why you hid out the window, I imagined it wasn't exactly for fun."

Apparently that wasn't what he meant as he gave a frustrated sigh and spun of the balls of his feet, pushing his right hand through his snow white hair, "No, not that, I mean I heard the other thing you two were talking about. The talk about me."  
Oh crap, I forgot about the possibility that he might have heard that because I was so intent on getting Jack out the house, how am I going to explain this to him? I don't even know how he feels towards me, no forget that, I'm unsure as to how I feel towards him. I mean, there's definitely an attraction, but to how deep is it?

"Hiccup, do you like me?"

"Well of course I do, why would I have gone round your house if I didn't like you?" Great, now I sound like an oblivious film character who doesn't understand even the most clear and blunt questions imaginable. I knew what he really meant, I was just delaying the inevitable.

His eyes hardened in determination "Hiccup, you know what I mean."

My palms began to grow sweaty from nervousness, my throat grew dry as I tried to formulate an acceptable answer. Holding tighter onto Toothless, I finally had a reply in mind.

However, when it came to actually saying my reply, it was a complete disaster, "I'm, erm, I... I."

My voice was weak and shaking, yet Jack just looked at me, his blue eyes sparkling with anticipation, yet he looked calm and collected overall, "I suppose one could say that, yet one could also say that, but then there's also the fact of..."

No matter what I tried, new sentences just forced the old ones out, making all my answers just the anxious ramblings of a boy who can't admit how he feels.

Jack sighed and turned back towards the window, slumping to place his hands on the windowsill. I could just imagine the look on his face, eyes scrunched up in despair, bottom lip quivering. He was be so bold and outright, and yet here I was, sitting here, stuttering away, making it seem like I'm trying to find an acceptable way to reject him. Well no more, I'm not going to be so weak when Jack was so strong.

"There's an attraction," I said, my voice still wavering slightly in apprehension for what might happen next, "I just don't know how far it goes yet." When I say attraction, I really meant that there was a simple crush, nothing like proper feelings of affection, and probably nothing like what Jack feels.

Jack's head instantly perked up at this, turning back to me with a smile the size of the Nile on his face, "he likes me," he whispered to himself, jumping up and down a little in excitement, he let out a triumphant happy giggling noise. Striding back over to me, he knelt down and embraced me in a tight hug that I tried to wriggle out of straight away.

"What's wrong, I thought you just said you liked me?" His face reverted back to one of hurt and worry.  
"I did, but remember, I'm still holding Toothless."

Realisation was clear on Jack's face as he quickly backed away from me, "Oh God, is he alright? I didn't squash him did I?"  
As is to answer the question himself, Toothless scuttled out from between my legs, looking up at Jack for a few seconds with a sharp glare, his tongue flickering in and out of his mouth threateningly, before climbing back into his cage.

"Dude, I swear that your lizard is secretly an evil mastermind out to kill me."

I laughed quietly, fully believing that might be possible, I looked over to the supposed villain and he was still staring out at the two of us, as if expecting something to happen.

I placed my hands on my knees, gripping at the fabric of my trousers "So, "I said, "What about you?"  
"What about me?"  
"Do you, you know? Like me too?"

"Well if me hugging you and squealing like a love sick puppy didn't give it away, then yes, I do."

"Why?"  
"What do you mean why?"  
"Exactly that. Why?"

He gave me a perplexed look, telling me he wasn't quite understanding me, "Well come on, I mean, anyone can understand liking you. You're funny, kind and attractive, I'm sarcastic and insensitive as hell, and to top it off, I'm the height of a garden gnome."  
Jack grabbed me by both shoulders, giving them a firm squeeze and a small shake, eyes ablaze with annoyance, "You have to stop putting yourself down like that Hiccup! Yeah, sure you're sarcastic at times, but who isn't? I like you as you are."

His eyes soon turned to holding flames of passion. He stepped closer to me, putting his lips close to my ear, "And FYI, you're the perfect height for me, my little Hiccup, so, will you be my boyfriend?"

I was little stunned by that. Not only does he like me in that way, but he also likes that I'm sarcastic, insensitive and short? Well, that's a new one. I stood there staring at Jack as he moved his head away, seemingly checking if I was still alive.

"Hic?"  
"Yes."  
"Well, will you?"

"Jack, I literally just answered you." Even if it turns out to really be nothing more than a silly crush, at least I will know for sure. If it develops into something more then great, but for now, I'll just see how it goes.

The smile from earlier lit up his face again, pulling me into a tight embrace yet again, then he moved his face closer.

Placing my finger on his lips, I made myself clear, "But if we're going to do this, I want to take it slowly. I have never been in a relationship before, so I don't really know what to do."

"Of course, my little Hiccup," with his eyes softening in acceptance, he settled for resting his head on my shoulder, but I noticed he did tighten the hug a bit. Don't get me wrong, it felt nice, his hands on my back and head, while mine just rested on his back, partly because I couldn't reach his head. I felt the warm, soft texture of his hoodie for a while longer before I started to fell just a little bit awkward.

"Um, Jack?"  
"Yeah?"  
"We still need to work out how to get you out without my Dad seeing you."

Oh God, how was I going to tell Dad about this, should I tell him? No, not telling him would be the worst decision I could possibly make, at least if I admit it, he might admire my courage. But right now, I need to get Jack out, Dad wouldn't admire my lying, I knew that for a fact.

"Well, what if I just climbed down out the window, I mean, I have already hang from it?"

"I suppose that's really the only option we have, just be careful, I don't want to have to take you to the hospital because you fell trying to impress me or something."  
"Hey, who's the one who hit his head on the ground? As far I remember it wasn't me!" he teased light-heartedly. "And I don't need to try to impress you, I can tell you always impressed by me."

Arrogant boy.

He walked over to the window and swung one of his long legs out and over the frame. Tentatively, he stuck his foot in a gap between the bricks. Using his foothold to give himself a bit of a leap he grabbed the drainpipe to his right with both hands, just barely making the gap. Using the wall to steady himself, he slowly began to descend, using any sticking out bricks to further support himself. I walked over to the window and leaned on the frame, crossing my arms for a bit of extra comfort.

Jack looked up at me from his position half way down the pole, having a sweet smile on his face as he did so,"See you Monday, Hic."  
"Yeah, see you then, Frost boy."

Giving me a cheeky wink, he slid down the remaining length of the pole, waving goodbye and blowing a kiss at me. I just smiled bashfully at him, waving him off as he ran to his car. I wonder how Dad never saw that hulking thing.

I stayed in my room for the next few hours, waiting for when Dad would call me down to have a poor excuse for a dinner. I passed the time reading Cormac McCarthy's 'The Road', a post apocalyptic novel, telling the story of a man and a boy as they struggle to survive against the threat of starvation, cannibals and the world itself. I had just reached a rather disturbing point, telling of how cannibals were spit-roasting a baby, which they would later devour. It was slightly new to me, as I always found that authors thought killing children was a literary taboo, well actually a media taboo overall. Just when I was about to find out if the main characters would be discovered by the feral savages, my Dad called for me from the kitchen, his voice echoing through the house.

"Son, dinner is ready, I used the bread that we won to make some sardine sandwiches, and there are some apple slices too, I know that you love apples."

Actually I don't love apples, I'd just rather eat them than fish all the time, still, he was trying I suppose. Placing my book down, I walked out of my room, giving my window one last glance before I did.

When I reached the table, I expected the sandwich to be sloppily thrown together and look thoroughly unappetising, with the apple slices to be half heatedly prepared, but Dad had done a somewhat decent job at making the food look edible. Don't get me wrong, I'd much rather have something Jack has cooked for me; In that luxurious kitchen of his, with hundreds of interesting, new ingredients; with me watching him masterfully create endless combinations from them, while he makes jokes for me, some being funnier than others. But for tonight, however, I'll just be grateful for the fact Dad had won some bread, after all it would distract from the taste of sardines.

Once we had both sat at our usual seat, which were on opposite ends of the old, unsteady, oval table, we began to eat in uneasy silence until my Dad spoke up, words slightly distorted due to having a full mouth, "So, how did you fix the T.V?"  
"I turned the plug off and plugged it back in again."

"Oh that works does it?"

Obviously it works, that's what I, well Jack, did wasn't it?

"Apparently so."

"Good to know."

We continued to eat in silence from then onwards.

After finishing the washing and drying up by myself, Dad being much to masculine to lower himself to such a chore, I took the left over sardines, which I had subtly picked out my sandwich and put them in Toothless's bowl. He seemed unsure at first, but quickly went about his usual routine of eating the body and then the head, eating the potent smelling fish with gratitude.

"Hmph, at least someone else likes those things too." It's a good thing to know, it means I can use him as a mini rubbish bin.

I dropped my heavy body down on the top of my bed and closed my heavy eyes, soon losing myself in my thoughts. I had agreed to be Jack's boyfriend, so what did that mean, does it mean anything? Do I have to act differently? I don't think so, because he keeps telling me to never change for anyone, so I assume he's including himself in that too.

What do I talk to him about if we go on a date, when we go on a date? And how do I tell Dad, do I do it alone, or do I have Jack their too, but for that to work he would have had to meet Jack first, and can just imagine Jack giving something away before I'm ready to admit it.

Lying there alone in my room, my thoughts soon turned into dreams, and those dreams rotted into nightmares. Yet again I was surrounded by darkness, everlasting silence clogging up my ears drums, such deafening silence. I looked around, it was the same place as my last dream, but something was different, more ominous. The darkness was no longer just a black blanket around me; there was a thick, dense smoke encompassing me. I heard something scuttle behind me, sounding like bone on a hard concrete pavement, yet when I swung around, I was met by only more darkness. I put my hands out to my sides as I carefully walked backwards, suddenly bumping into a bony, but sturdy object. Before I had a chance to twirl and look upon it, I felt multiple bony fingers slither their way through my hair, teasing every strand, then forcefully tugging my head back once they reached my crown, tightening their grip to cause extra pain.

The hoarse voice of my mother resonated around me, "Why Hiccup, why do you disappoint me so? Why couldn't you be more normal, like me and your father always wished?"  
The grip on my hair grew tighter, bringing tears to my ears, and then torment went on.

The grip did not waver or fade, but was couple with yet more ominous whisperings from my mother, with a serpentine tongue she began to talk in rhyme, "he smiles that sickly sweet smile that he does own. And like a mad rabbit in heat he's making my son moan. So alas you'll grovel plead, as all man will come to do, like the end to some story that you read, what I, your mother, knows is true! Once he has done his heinous deed, which he will not soon come to rue. He will make your wretched heart bleed, your soul turn shades of black and blue, as the pitiful devil and the distinguished he decreed."

The poem like speech rang through my mind, reverberating through my bones.

That's when I heard it again, that cackle, that laugh that belongs in a horror movie villain's nightmares. The cackle that signalled the arrival of my last nightmare. The figure was back in front of me, this time sitting on a large, black throne, seemingly made from dark clouds. It extended for what looked like forever, making me ponder if there was actually an end to the expanse of shadows. The side of the arms of the throne were adorned with what appeared to hands, some with their fingers curled as if in pain, others with the fingers straight and tense. The ends were styled to resemble the heads of a gargoyle-esque creature, not unlike those found on an old English church.

The powerful, nightmarish monster rose from his seat, his pitch black cloak swaying as he advanced towards me.

"Hiccup, welcome home, I trust your dear mother gave you some good advice?" His words came out as calm and cool, he was completely relaxed around me, which was hardly surprising, I'm not exactly threatening to someone like him, well, to anyone for that matter.

"Did you really think that just because you found somebody who likes you for yourself that you would really be happy?" another horrendous laugh filled the air, "Your mind what allow yourself to be happy, not after what you've done."

What I've done? But, what is it that I have done?

"W-what do you m-mean?"  
The figure returned to his seat, crossing his legs over the other in an effeminate fashion, "Why don't you ask your dear mother?"

Just before I could question him further, he held a dark hand up towards me, causing smoke to swallow me.

"By the way, Hiccup, you may refer to me as Pitch."

I awoke to a sudden noise, loud and clattering. Hurriedly turning my head to the source of the noise, I saw that Toothless's cage had fallen from its position on my shelf. Through the gaps in the bars, I could see that the lazy lizard was pressed against the walls of his home, still fast asleep.

I walked over, my feet being tickled by the mixture of sand and straw, "How did you manage that in your sleep?"

Turning the cage up to its correct position, I gently placed the straw back inside, and attempted to get in as much sand as I could without waking the sleeping culprit up. Unfortunately, this was an effort made in vain, as just when I started to pout my handful of sand back, Toothless shifted in his sleep, ending up right underneath the flow of tiny grains. Awaking with a sudden start, he looked around for whatever it was that had covered him in his sleep. I couldn't help but feel it was a little deserved. He turned towards me, giving me a look as if to say he knew it was me, and that he would not forgive me for it, but I didn't really care right now. I had a bigger concern right now.

I ended up not bothering to do my usual morning routine, instead just walking straight to the living room.

I needed answers, what had I done, and why would my mother know about it? It's not like I can ask her, so I can only try the next best person. But this will be difficult, Mum is always a touchy subject to Dad, not that I know why.

As expected Dad was already up, but what was surprising was that he wasn't watching the television. He was reading, as in an actual, physical book. He saw me from the corner of his eye, and placed the book down before I could see the cover of it. Was he trying to hide it from me?

"Er, hey Dad."  
"Son."

How on earth do you bring up your dead mother to a Dad that you barely talk to at all? Still, I needed to try, for the sake of my sanity.

I need to be subtle about this, "Dad, how did Mum die?" Crap.

Dad's face filled up with shock, quickly turning to sadness and grief.

"W-why do you want to know that, son?" I had never heard his voice waver before, this is definitely a precarious talk.

"Because, She's my mother, but I never found out about how she went, it just feels a bit wrong for me not to know," while my voice wasn't quivering, I could not look my Dad in the eye, I just stared at my bare feet, wiggling my toes, making a small patting sound on the old wood.

"Sorry son, but I don't want to talk about this."  
"Please Dad! She was my Mother!"  
"And she was my wife!" He got up from his seat, beginning to exit the room.

"Dad, please, I'm begging you!" I held my hand up after him, why wouldn't he tell me? I know it must be painful, but it is my right to know. Isn't it?  
He turned and gave me a look of disappointment, "You really want to know son?" His eyes were heavy, as if carrying some great secret.

"Yes," I pleaded, desperate to find the truth, and save my mind from nightmares.

Dad sighed and looked me dead in the eye, "It was because of you."

**_Les Gasp! Was anyone expecting that? I hope not! _**

**_Wow, I never thought this story would become as popular as it has! I just want to thank everyone who was reviewed, especially Loti-miko and PhoenixDumpling who both offered some very helpful advice on how to improve the overall quality of the story. _**


	6. Wallowing in Grief

Me? She died because of me, what on earth did I do? What could I have done, I was only six when she died, how could I, a young child, who could barely even go to the toilet alone, have killed her? My shaking knees grew heavy and weak in fear, my palms grew sweatier than ever before out of anticipation. I couldn't even bring myself look up at my Dad directly, I was too afraid, too cowardly. So I just sat and stared, I stared at the floor, at the ceiling, anything, praying to God that I didn't do anything intensely terrible or painful.

"H-how was it my f-fault, what did I- what did I d-do" my voice was pathetic and frail, sounding like it could expire on me at any passing second. I have been nervous plenty of times in my life, but this surely tops the list.

"You were six when it happened, still young and innocent, you had no sense of the world around you, and that's what caused it."

I looked up at him, his eyes were heavy with sorrow, obviously remembering the event was much more painful for him than I originally thought. Even when somebody in the family died, I never remember Dad crying, or at least not where I could see or hear him.

He continued, pinching the bridge of his nose as he returned to the sofa, motioning for me to do the same, "We were at the park, it was a warm, peaceful summers day, so we thought we might as well make the most of it. Me and your mother were sitting on the bench, watching you play innocently with Snotlout. You went on the swings, the slides, the roundabout, anything you wanted to go on, you went on."

Wow, me and Snotlout used to be friendly to each other, maybe what happened explains why he is so openly cruel towards me?

"You were playing away so happily, it made your mum happy, and that made me happy too. She would often whisper to me how you looked so carefree, that she could imagine you flying through the air without a worry in the world. It was evening by the time we decided that we had to leave, of course, you stopped being so happy go lucky, becoming the stubborn boy that you are, refusing to leave the park no matter what, so of course Snotlout dragged you away while you wailed like a baby."  
He looked to the wall opposite us, most likely thinking of the best way to phrase whatever he was going to reveal.

"It became dark before we were even half way back home, you were tired so your mother was carrying you on her back while you slept, or at least trying to anyway, she never was very strong." He chuckled sadly, recalling some amusing memory.

"Of course because of that, she wasn't walking as fast as usual to make sure you didn't wake up and scream the whole neighbourhood down, falling behind me and Snotlout, but I thought nothing of it. We didn't live in a dangerous area."

"When you did eventually wake up, you had a large amount of renewed energy, wanting to walk and run around by yourself, but your mum forced you hold her hand, out of fear that you would go running into the road or something of the like."

What did any of this have to do with mother? My mind was struggling greatly to process all this information, so far, I just seemed like any other innocent child, not one that would intentionally cause the death of his mother.

But then Dad sighed, struggling to continue, "And yet you did."

My eyes widen in realisation of what he was about to say, "It was when we were outside our house, you were so excited to do whatever it was you wanted to do that you lost all you sense, you struggled out your mother's grip and ran across the road, not even stopping to check if there were cars or other vehicles, you just wanted to be at home. When you were in about the middle of the road, a truck came, driving much faster than it really should have. You froze in fear, if you didn't you could have made it, but you did. So your mother, loving you as much as she did, pushed you out the way, getting hit herself in the process. It was only when Snotlout and I heard her scream your name that we even knew anything was wrong, but by then it was too late. She was already hit."  
My head began to burn, feeling as if my brain was alight. My eyes watered and stung, threatening to unleash a waterfall over my freckled cheeks if he carried on, but I had to know.

"Was she in pain?"  
"No. She died instantly, the force of the impact broke her neck and back. One of her fingers was caught in the grill on the truck's front and her stomach was bleeding profusely, dyeing the road a deep shade of crimson. You were in shock as I ran over to her, cradling her bloodied head in my hands, but she was gone, her eyes as pitch black as the sky. The drive stopped and called the ambulance, but it was a waste of time, my wife, your mother, was gone, and it was all because she sacrificed herself to save you from your own impatience and obliviousness."

He got up and headed towards the front door, his voice no longer holding any of its former strength, no, now it was weak and waning, threatening to break and crack if he talked much more.

"I'm going for a walk, I expect you to be in bed when I get back."

I watched him walk out the door, tears silently, slowly flowing down from my lifeless eyes. I wanted to know, to find out what had caused my mother to be taken from me, and now I know. It was me, I took my own mother from me, no-one else. There was nobody else to blame, nobody to hide behind, it was all because of me.

Not wanting to cause my Dad to become any worse than he already is, I dragged my useless carcass up to my bed, slipping on one or two of the steps, almost hitting my head again. I threw myself on the bed and crawled up into the foetal position, feeling the need for security and comfort. I let out my wretched grief, sobbing, loudly, hysterically. My face became soaked by the downpour of tear, flowing over my nose and drenching my pillow to, causing a few strands of my hair to become damp. I place my hands over my head, further trying to console myself, to no avail.

After hours of crying, my tears had all dried up, and I was just laying there, exhaustedly staring at the ceiling, wondering what tonight's nightmare would be. Would my mother show me the events of her death, or would Pitch come and ridicule me some more? My eyes closed slowly, with me fighting weakly to keep them open, not wanting what horrors I would be sure to experience.

As darkness filled my vision, I began seeing a figure, but it was not Pitch or my mother, no, it was my Dad. He was sitting on a bench, crying his eyes out, much like how I had been doing. His head was in his hands, which were supported by his large legs, as he let out all the heartache that tonight's events had caused him. It made me feel even worse, to know that not only had I caused the death of my mother, but I had also managed to reduce my father to a shell of his former self. No longer was he a strong, hardy man, resembling a Viking more than anybody I knew, now he was weak; A weak, wrecked and ruined state of a man, sitting there mourning the loss of his wife and the failure that is his son.

The dark clouds above him began to grow accumulate, bringing with them a terrible thunder storm. And yet my Dad did not move a single inch. There he sat, no longer crying, but just staring ahead with his empty eyes as the rain fell around him. He wiped his nose on the back of his hand, and dried his eyes with the other.

He sat up, cleared his throat and gave his chest a mighty wallop , "Come now Stoic," he said, "Be strong, a true man is strong for his family, he doesn't sit and wallow while everything fall apart. No, he repairs, he rebuilds."

"Wow, what a pathetic display of emotion," the voice of that demonic fiend Pitch rang out from the shadows, I could practically feel the malevolent smirk on his face, it was seeping out of his every word.

He had not made himself visible, but I could tell he was close, the ominous feeling of fear and horror playing on my mind.

"Don't try and fight it Hiccup, you did this. You broke your family, killed your mother, and destroyed your father, turning him into a hollow being, one with patriarchal delusions of what a man truly is."

I heard the flutter of a cloak behind me, turning I saw him, but this time, he did not resemble himself, yet his burning eyes, grey, lifeless skin and dark attire gave him away. He looked like me.

"Don't you see Hiccup, we are the same, we are the great harbingers of fear, sorrow and discord. Not just two separate, yet alike, entities are we, no! We are one and the same. For you are me, and I am you."

He held out one bony hand towards me, nodding his head slightly, motioning for me to take it. I debated in my mind whether I should or not. When I didn't his gaze turned colder than usual, he evaporated into shadowy wisps, reappearing seconds later in his original appearance.

"Why do you resist, just give in to your guilt and you will know true peace! You will never need to feel again, no grief, no anger, no pain, just one calm and strategic mind. This is the flaw of you cretins, the thoroughly ignorant race known as humanity."

He waved his arms out, using them to emphasis his point, "You fool yourself into believing the ridiculous delusion that emotions make you superior, strong, but you are fooled by your own beliefs, limited and blinded by them. The emotions that you cherish, love, happiness, amusement, these are false, misleading and underhanded pleasantries, all of them ending in pain and sure to bring only anguish and strife."

He knelt down in front of me, bringing himself to my eye level, speaking gently and almost charismatically "Become hollow, and you shall be free! Never again to feel these animalistic feelings, you shall never again know pain or heartache, you shall be at peace."

I must be out of my mind, whether it was from the fact that I killed my mother or broke my dad, but the offer made to me was sounding awfully tempting.

"Never feel pain or grief?"  
"Not a single shed of it," he replied hastily, his face lighting up in a terrible sense of satisfaction that he was persuading me, "Do it, Hiccup, become undisturbed, become like me."

His last words rang in my mind. That's when my sense suddenly returned to me, I could never be like him, I wouldn't let myself. I pushed him back with all my might, although he did not move far at all. As he gave me an irritated glare, I slowly reversed, shaking my head at him.

"I will never become a monster like you."

"So you do not wish for freedom from strife, very well you little fool, but hear this, you shall know pain," He pointed one bony, emancipated finger at me as I backed more quickly, trying to get as far away from him as I could. Looking back, it's foolish to think one can hide from something in its own territory, especially when that something is an embodiment of fear and self hatred.

I continued to back away, not daring to take my eye off of Pitch, but all of a sudden, I hit something soft, it felt familiar and comforting. Turning I saw that it was Jack, he had his back to me, but nobody else has that hair.

"Jack, what are you-"  
"Don't talk to me you murderer, I can't believe you did this, how could I ever love you knowing what you really are? A monster, a murderer."

"What? No, don't say that! I'm not a monster! Look at me Jack, do I look like a monster to you?"

He turned around gradually, revealing his grey skin and smouldering yellow eyes, resembling Pitch himself. Another of his tricks was what I tried to tell myself, but my mind wouldn't listen, for some reason refusing to believe what was obviously true.

I shifted my weight slightly hurriedly, and took one step forward, throwing my hands out it front of me, I shouted at him, begging him to just listen to me, "No, Jack, please listen. It was an accident! You have to believe me"

"Lies, all fabrications and lies" the strangled voice of my mother rang out from behind me, yet when I gazed upon her, she no longer looked how I last saw her. She was not tattered, starved or rotting, no broken neck or empty, soulless eyes. No, this time she was untainted, pure, and while her eyes were no longer empty, they were most certainly not her own one, they resembled Jack's current eyes, ones aflame with abhorrence and loathing, "You murdered me, in your own stupidity, you little runt. Your own mother! You can try to hide it, but it is as has been said, you are a monster, the corrupt among the pure, unfit to continue on this realm."

Her words stung like a thousand needles, slowly piercing my mind, I was feeling the effect of every word, every syllable.

Yet another figure appeared, this time one resembling my Dad, but he was not brawny and strong as he truly is, but a weak and frail man looking as if he might topple over and die at any second. Looking upon him, I saw that his eyes yet again that same shade of amber, "Why have you reduced me to this Hiccup, to a pathetic husk of a man? One who can no longer protect his family, one that can't repair or rebuild. Why do you take such joy in torturing me so? What kind of son are you? No son would do this to his own father, only a true monster."

I forcefully slammed my hands to my ears, giving me a sharp pain, but it didn't matter, I just had to block out the words of these imposters. My eyes darted around wildly, trying to find some place to run, any place to run, but it was useless, there was only shadow. The three apparitions advanced menacingly towards me, my mother hovering above the ground like a ghost, my father slowly moving his creaking bones and Jack, Jack just walked up to me, looking as if nothing was wrong in the world what so ever, as if he was going to enjoy this. With my eyes still darting around, they finally landed on the one responsible for this, Pitch. He was standing away from the scene, neither smiling nor laughing, but just staring intently, waiting for whatever was going to happen to happen. While still looking at him, the last thing I felt was multiple hands on my body, forcing me to the floor, holding me down, despite my best efforts to struggle free.

"You should have listened Hiccup, now sleep."

All went silent and I found myself in true darkness.

_**Ha ha, and so the mysterious death of Hiccup's mother is revealed! I know this is a short chapter in comparison to the others, but when the original just seemed like to seperate chapters squezed together, and so I split them. I'll try to get it completed and uploaded by tonight. :D**_

_**Thanks for reading, faving, following and reviewing everyone! :)**_


	7. Author's Note - Help

Please note that there will not be an upload today, like there usually is, as the original chapter was far too unbelivable.

I have taken advice from a reader and waiting for some ideas on how to improve.

Any ideas that you have would be greatly appreciated! :3


	8. Blackmailed and Loaded Down

I awoke the next morning at half past twelve in the afternoon, I felt like crap, and I bet I looked like it too, but I just didn't care. Why should I, it's not like it matters in the grand scheme of life. I laid there staring up at the ceiling, staring intently at a crack that I saw sure was growing wider with each second. Hopefully it would just split the roof and make it collapse, with me still underneath.

I heard Toothless scurry about in his cage, no doubt he was hungry, I didn't feed him last night, and his morning breakfast had been heavily postponed. Dragging myself off my bed, I stood, lifeless, in front of his food drawer, deciding that it wasn't even worth measuring out an amount, instead just grabbing a large handful and dropping it into the bowl, he would stop eating when he was full.

I walked back to my bed, and found myself staring yet again. I wasn't even thinking, my brain was a blank canvas, and not in the way that something wonderful can be created from it. No, it was blank as it had no prospect, and it would remain that way.

I looked again at my clock, twelve forty five, I had missed nearly almost all the school day, but it's not like it matters, the people there are idiots, and I don't deserve to be among the few decent ones. Especially Jack. Jack Frost, who always saw the good in people, even when it wasn't there, it was his greatest charm, and his biggest flaw. I lied back down on the top of the bed, and continued my staring at the roof.

* * *

This soon became a daily occurrence, I only left my room when my Dad had left the house, and even then it was only to go to the toilet. I sleeping pattern had become increasingly infrequent, and my eating habits even more so. It had been a week of this now, day in, day out. My throat had become dry and harsh from lack of regular use. Toothless's cage was overflowing with a mass of untouched food, he just lied there, staring at the wall that his cage was propped up against, almost mirroring my actions to the letter.

I sighed and turned to face my door. My hair, which had now fallen in front of my eyes, was fairly heavy with grease, and my face felt extremely dirty, after having not washed in seven consecutive days, that tends to happen to a person. I really don't like feeling so dirty, not to this extent anyway.

I got up and dragged myself into the bathroom, hitting the switch with my fist, causing the light to come flickering to life. I looked into the mirror, my face now fully revealed to my tired eyes. My previously bright, green orbs were now empty and dull, the veins becoming prominent, looking horribly hollow and bloodshot.. My cheeks were slightly gaunt from lack of nutrition, making me look slightly skeletal. My lips were chapped from not drinking and my hair was stuck to my face, feeling as if someone had super glued it to my face. In short, I looked as if I had become a crazed, homeless person. All in the matter of a week.

I clawed my top off, throwing it out the door, watching as it landed on the floor, it may have been silent, but to me, the noise it created was just plain irritation. The flapping through the air, the sound of it crumpling on the floor, it was just annoying. I harshly tugged my trousers off and over my prominent hip bones, this time placing the item of dirty clothing on the floor, so as to not make more needless sounds to break my bubble of silence. With all my articles of clothing off, I turned on the shower, and climbed straight in, not bothering to check how cold it was.

* * *

When I emerged, I no longer looked like a crazed homeless person, just a wet, crazy person. I hung the towel so that the ends were over both sides of my head, covering my ears, making me look slightly childlike in the mirror. I tugged it loosely back and forth, causing my hair to spout out in all directions when I took the towel away. I mindlessly threw on some clothes over what remained of my body, and laid back down on my bed, falling yet again, into another dreamless sleep.

* * *

It was seven o'clock the next morning when my eyes reopened, time seemed to be passing at random speeds recently. I can tell you, I did not awake for a good reason, somebody was at the front door. I decided to ignore it, if they really had something important to say, they could wait and come back when my Dad returned home. But, they persisted, knocking on the windows of the living room, knocking on the back door, returning to the front door, whatever surface they could find, they seemed to pound their fists loudly on, abusing the surface as if they loathed if.

I got up and exited my pit, thoroughly irritated at the disturbance. Can't they just go away? I walked into my Dad's room, which I rarely ever go into, I only entered when I used to put his washing away, he would just leave it on the floor if it was up to him. I neared the window, hoping I could see who had disturbed my wallowing, no way was I opening the front door to check, they might spot me and force me to interact with them.

I peered out from the corner of the window, placing one hand on the wall, and the other on the window frame, trying to be as careful as possible that nobody could see me. But there was no one in sight, yet I could still hear them walking. They were male, and sounded large their deep voices reeking of masculinity so much so that their words were more grunts and groans rather than comprehensible sentences. I had absolutely no idea what they were saying, and that made me worry.

But then they stopped. I heard the clatter of my letter box as someone slid their hand in, and then pulled it quickly back out. There was the distinct sound of paper dropping to the floor, what could they have posted? I looked back out the window and saw two quite portly men, one being a good twenty years older than the other, shown by his grey hair and heavy wrinkles. The other had a head of thick, black hair, and due to his size, his face was almost baby like. The older one turned to look back at the house, staring directly at the window I was standing in, I don't think he could see me as he just turned and continued walking away.

My curiosity peaked, and I slowly dragged myself down the stairs, noticing that the decent had gotten harder each time that I did it, but that didn't matter to me, nothing really did. Just as I thought, there on the wooden floor, was a letter, sealed in a blue envelope, addressed to the parent or guardian of Hiccup Horrendous Haddock, it was from my school.

I opened it up sluggishly. Well, it was talking about me, and Dad's not here, so I might as well read it anyway. It started off with the usual needless greetings that a school always gave. That was fine, needless even, but what caught my eye was the second paragraph. It was short, and to be honest, painfully blunt. It read, "Mr Haddock, we have been allowing you time to report why Hiccup has not been coming to school as we are aware of your financial situation, and there is the possibility of your phone lines being cut off, but this is too long. If Hiccup does not attend tomorrow, he will be permanently excluded, with no chance for return," I rolled my eyes, I honestly didn't care about whether I got expelled or not, the past me would have, but not now.

But as I looked back at the sheet, just about to scrunch it up, a single word caught my eye, I continued to read. "If Hiccup fails to attend school now only will the aforementioned punishment be emplaced, but you will face charges, and most probably, prosecution."  
Prosecution? They were going to arrest Dad because I hadn't gone to school of my own will? My grip on the paper grew tighter, causing heavy creases to occur in its surface. Fine, they win, I'll go to their god damn school, but not for them or myself. I just couldn't bear to be any more of a failure in my father's eyes.

* * *

The next morning, I awoke to the usual shrill sound of my alarm clock, causing me to slam my fist on it to shut it up, and to vent my frustration. The force of the hit didn't even leave a mark, but it felt somewhat good for me. Looking at Toothless's cage, I saw that today, the mountain of food had diminished significantly, yet there was still some left. I went over to his drawer, and found it empty, oh right, I never did get anymore food for him. Well, the remainder will have to suffice until after school when I can pick some up, looks like I won't be back as soon as I hoped. Great, more time in that place that people call the civilised world. What's so civilised about it, it's just full of arrogant intellectuals and aggravating idiots, who were constantly in competition with each other, even though it was obvious the former would win in the grand scheme of things.

I did the necessaries for the morning and headed down stairs, only thinking of how to get through the day as quickly as possible, so that I could return to my room as quickly as possible. But then I stopped in my tracks, as if frozen in fear. Dad would be down there, getting ready for work. I hadn't spoke to him since the incident, where he revealed how I ruined his whole life in a single, fleeting moment. I would just have to be quick, quiet, and not draw his attention. He would just look at me with those eyes again, the eyes that held such grief and disappointment in me. I couldn't handle that look again.

As I descended the stairs, I saw that he was actually asleep on the sofa, the television still flickering and flashing away to an audience that just wasn't there. I walked over to turn off the contraption, no use leaving it on and wasting our electricity money. I walked over, careful not to wake up, I couldn't bear for him to look at me with those eyes again. But as I did so, my nose began to tingle, Dad stank of alcohol, it stained his being entirely, on his clothes, his heavy, snoring breath, it was even in his thick beard, which he always kept in pristine condition. In that moment, I was absolutely sure that in the week that I hadn't seen him, he had developed alcoholic tendencies, most likely out of reliving the horror I put him through. Urgh, I'm such an idiot. I noticed that there was a beer bottle in his hand, and another empty one on the floor, I felt sorry that he had been reduced to this, but this was his choice, his way of coping, I can't stop him anymore than I can help him, not if it helps him with his troubles.

Grabbing the remote, I turned the lonesome T.V off, watching as the screen flicked to black, swallowing the poor quality picture in perfect blackness. It was very reminiscent of my nightmares, a colourful and bright thing, encased by shadow. I shook my head harshly, and turned to walk towards the door. As I did so, my eyes were drawn to a rather appealing bag of bread laying on the kitchen side. I stopped, a couple of steps away from both it and the door. The longer I looked at it, the louder my stomach was rumbling, soon sounding like I had a starved monster within my gut. I just ignored it, and carried on my way.

Walking down the path, which would lead me to the house of blackmailing scumbags, known as school, I noticed that anybody who I passed would stare at me, as if they had seen a ghost or monster. It aggravated me, as well as making me feel isolated and alone, yet again. I pushed my hands into my pockets and continued on my way, trying to avoid any eye contact with the people I passed, I hoped no one would try to talk to me, I just wanted to get this over with.

* * *

I came up outside the school gates, seeing nobody I knew, which usually would be a bad thing, but today, it was a blessing. Although it was short lived.

"Wow, look who's back from the dead, well, maybe, he looks like he died and was resurrected," A female voice spoke behind me, I knew immediately who it was. Astrid.

She walked around to my front, looking directly at my face, while I hung my head low, glaring up at her.

"Hmm, you really do look crap, what's the matter, run out of money again, you little hobo?"

I pushed past her, but she continued, "That's what you get when you have a, absolute moron and failure for a Dad, no wonder your mum left him."

I stopped, turned and glared at her, "Shut up, bitch."

She looked at me, as if she was surprised I had retaliated, usually I don't so I'm an easy target.

"Well, look who grew a pair. What happened, did your Dad buy them for you?"

I walked back over to her, staring her straight in the eyes, for the first time I noticed we were actually the same height, and that gave me an idea.

"Hmph, who are you kidding, you're not going to do any-"

And in one swift movement of my head, I succeeded in shutting her up once and for all, and most likely broke her nose. Good, hopefully she won't be able to rely on her oh so superior looks anymore. This was going to be a slow day.

* * *

I was now sitting outside the headmaster's office, alone and slumped on a bench. As soon as my head made contact with Astrid's, it attracted the attention of every single person in the area, including Mr Haspeki, the huge, hulking, homophobic gym teacher. He refused to listen to my story, ordering someone to take Astrid to the nurse while he sorted me out. Apparently, "bitch deserved it," is not a suitable reason to head butt someone.

"You can go in now, Hiccup," Miss Potts announced to me, she was utterly shocked at the reason I was going to the head's office, looking at me with saddened eyes as I walked past her. Oh well, she can live with it, it won't ruin her entire life.

Entering the office for the first time, I took in how it was so... so... pathetic. It was smaller than a small sized classroom, there were no fancy chairs, not a single book, just two chairs either side of an old and used desk, with a drab old winter painting on next to it, and a water machine in the corner. It was as plain and as wretched as this school.

The headmaster turned around in his rotatable chair, trying to look as if he had some control over everything and appear to be mildly threatening, he failed truly and completely.

"Hiccup, son-"  
My eyebrow twitched, I was not his son, "Please don't call me that", I interrupted rudely.

He frowned, "Yes, well, please don't interrupt then. Anyway, I heard about what you've done to that girl, while she may not be a nice, or bright, child, I do not condone violence in my school."

I laughed crudely, "That's such a lie, do you know how much I went through?"  
"Yes well, that was because you're, lifestyle, is different to others, they fear what they don't understand."  
Lifestyle? My life doesn't revolve around who I want to crawl in bed with. My opinion of this buffoon instantly sunk to rock bottom, and perhaps even lower.

I sat there as he scrawled some useless notes on a piece of paper.

"Look Hiccup, I know you, and you're not this kid, nor do you want to be, there must be something really wrong in your life right not to make you like... like this. So I'm letting you off with a lighter punishment, you will have detention every night until you make up on the lessons that you have missed out on," I groaned, leaning my head back on the chair, "and you will have regular, daily appointments with the school psychiatrist, at least until she is certain you're sorted out your problems."

If my mouth could reach, I'm sure it would be on the floor right now, how could he send me to a psychiatrist like some common, well, psycho? There's nothing wrong with me, well apart from the obvious. I settled for glaring at him, hoping he would freeze at any moment.

Then to add insult to injury, "Oh, and the lessons you missed because of this meeting, and from your psychiatrist meetings, will also be part of your detention."

I hated this man with a fiery intensity.

"Now, go along and relax, it's break for now, so I suggest you prepare yourself for the upcoming lessons."

And with that he dismissed me.

I exited the room, wishing some form of pain upon him, not looking at Miss Potts as I passed her, she could save it for someone who cares. I went out the main door, and looked out towards the playground. There were kids of various ages talking, playing and just standing there mindlessly. There was no chance in hell I was going to join them, I needed to get this work done as quickly as possible, then I could go and get Toothless's food, and then, finally, return home.

I walked briskly to the nearest of my class rooms, which was my history class, however it turned out to take a while, as I kept thought I was seeing Jack, and I really couldn't deal with that right now. So when I did finally get there I entered the room without knocking, that would just waste more time.

"I believe you have some work for me to complete Ms Fritton?"  
She turned from her work, not looking even remotely surprised by my appearance, "Yes, luckily for you it's not too much, your class didn't have history more than two classes last week."

She pulled out a draw, revealing an average sized booklet of paper, just summarise the main points in this," I took it, giving a quick flick through, "it's not as in depth as the copy I gave the class, but you'll need to look online if there's anything you're unsure of, I don't have time to go back."  
She didn't notice I was already half way out the door when she said this.

There was still fifteen minutes left of break, so I sat in a mostly deserted common room, only a few others around me, mostly people who were majorly behind. I flicked through the first three pages of the booklet. Luckily the information was clearly separate, making it easy to see the points I had to summarise. I had managed to do a fair amount when the bell rang, but luckily I have free period now for two hours, hopefully I can finish a large amount of my work now. But I should get the rest of my work first. Asking a boy who I did not recognise to save my seat, I set out for the other teachers.

* * *

It did not take much time to collect the mountain of work from English and art, luckily my school is not a large one. I walked the empty halls, on my way to collect anything my geography teacher, Mr Hannah, might have for me. Luckily, I'm quiet good at geography, so it shouldn't take too long for me to catch up with the others in the class. Don't mistake this for acceptance though, I still want to leave this place as soon as possible.

As I neared the class, setting the heavy books I was struggling to carry down on the table nearby, I noticed something strange in a nearby class window. Jack. Even though he would usually have a free period for two hours like me, he was in an engineering class, looking tired and sweaty, which in my current state, I couldn't decide if it was appealing or not. I decided not. He must have taken extra classes to fill up his spare time, cocky bastard.

Knocking on the door of Mr Hannah, I walked in slowly, the feminine looking man looked tire, and run down, but I still had trouble feeling empathy for him, I just wanted my work.

As I neared his desk, he looked up at me, seemingly surprised, but not because I was in school.

"I heard you have some work for me to do?"  
"Well, I would have, but unfortunately I don't," what? Get to the point already.

"You mean you lost it?" I asked, voice heavy with annoyance.

He looked at me, not appreciating my tone, "No. I have no work for you because it's already been done, Jack's done it for you. He's so proficient at winter geography that he can do two workloads and still maintain his grade, you should thank him."

The sycophantic man handed me my book, which I will admit to my surprise, was filled with notes that weren't in my handwriting. Jack had taken down elaborate notes for me, occasionally drawing a doodle in the margin, idiot, deface your own book if you have to. But, still I suppose I have to talk to him and thank him now.

Putting the book in my bag, I walked out the class, and picked up my stack of papers again. As I turned back towards the window, I saw Jack still working away, laughing with another boy. I didn't like it. Casting my silly jealousy aside, I returned back to the common room, hopefully that kid hasn't given away my seat like an idiot.

* * *

When I arrived back in the common room, I still had another hour and forty five minutes of free period, hopefully enough time to get as much done as possible. The majority of people were leaving now, going to whatever lesson they had next, leaving me to be the only one on my row of computers.

I worked efficiently for the next five minutes, getting the endless tasks done relatively quickly. But my pace was be disturbed as the new lot of people entered the room. But my eyes only saw two people, Jack, and whoever that boy from his last class was. They were laughing to each other, rather obnoxiously might I add.

I ducked down so that Jack wouldn't see me, I didn't want to be disturbed, I just wanted to get this done. In reality, I didn't really need to hide, I was on the back row, and could barley be seen over the screen anyway, but it's better to be safe than sorry.

I chanced a peak around the corner of the screen, seeing that the duo had not seen me, and had chosen to sit in the very front row, still laughing away.

The boy looked like the exact opposite of Jack, the only thing they had in common was their height. He had raven black hair, tanned skin, which looked slightly fake if you ask me, somewhat unimpressive muscles, and a slight sign of stubble. Overall, he already annoyed me. Huffing, I turned back to my work, trying to drown out their constant gigging and chuckling.

It was five minutes until the end of free period, which meant I had a lesson next, but after that and lunch, I would have to go to that psychiatrist person. Joy. Luckily, I had finished my History, thank god we only had two lessons with her last week, and had done what was likely a, eighth of my English, art I could do in my spare time in the comfort of my room when I eventually got home. They never said I could only do the work in detention.

I got up, preparing to go, when I remembered something; I didn't actually know what lesson I had now. Placing my bag back on the desk, I rummaged through it, getting multiple dirty looks from the people surrounding me, but I just ignored them as always.

"Come on, you piece of crap, where are you?"  
Then my brain finally switched on, I always kept my timetable in my pocket.

Reaching in, I found that I had art now, great, I wonder if Mrs Vysner would let me continue in here? I could use the excuse that I need to gather references and sources, of course I would actually get them, but that was beside the point. I stood, giving one last look at Jack, at least he wasn't laughing anymore with that guy, they were both talking to separate people, that's better I suppose. Taking my eyes of them with relative ease, I walked out the back door to the area, hoping to get to class before everyone else.

* * *

Luckily, thanks to my past behaviour I managed to convince my teacher to let me go to the common room, the bad thing though? Jack apparently convinced her too, sitting about five seats away from me, who was blocked from his view by only the bodies of other people, not very reliable cover that's for sure.

I found myself looking out for him more than I was collecting sources and references, at one point following the exact motions of the girl next to me so I didn't get revealed, the last half an hour would go so much easier if Jack would just leave me alone.

Finally, I did actually manage to collect a suitable amount of data, saving it to my documents, my memory stick and my back up memory stick for safe keeping. I just needed to produce outcomes now.

I sighed heavily, "this is going to be longer than I thought," if had only not fallen behind and focused on that painting before I stayed off, my pile would be so much smaller.

The girl next to me turned, "Did you say something?"  
"Not to you," I replied, making her look a little dejected, oh well, I'm never going to see her again.

I turned back to my screen, seeing that I had only three minutes until the final bell, I had to be careful for Jack not to see me. I carefully got up, quietly putting my sheets in my bag, and my books under my arm, if only I had a locker to put these in. I rose carefully, and slowly walked up the side of all the rows, why did Jack have to sit on the back row with me, and right by the door too?

I got to the front when the head teacher burst in the room., causing everyone to look up.

"Hiccup, you're art teacher told me you're in here, so come along!" He addressed it to the whole room, making me certain he was trying to make everyone know I was back at school.  
"I'm right in front of you," I replied curtly.

"Oh, there you are then, Hiccup, then come along, Hiccup," he practically shouted. Surely this was bullying? He was blatantly using my name to spread the word of my return. I now wanted to kill this man, crawl into a hole in the earth, and just die.

I gave one last look towards the room as I left, and I saw him. He was looking straight up at me, mouth agape and eyes full of hurt, most likely because I hadn't approached him. He stood up slowly, looking as if he was about to run to me. I never found out if he did, I left the room as soon as he stood, not giving him another look.

**There we go, I like this one much better! It's much more gradual and has a build up, unlike my first version of this chapter. Hopefully it wasn't too boring though, I have luckily never had deppression so I hope i didn't just sound like I was droning. **

**To anyone that has had it though, or in fact still does, my heart goes out to you, and I wish for you to remain strong.**

**Thanks for reading! :D**


	9. Mind Over Matter

I followed the man in front of me right to the other side of the school, back to the same area where his office was, but this time, going through the big red doors that were opposite the green ones that led to rooms such as the Head's office, the Financial office and the Staff room. Behind the surprisingly unnerving red doors were rooms such as the psychiatrist, obviously, the school nurse, and some bedrooms for sickly students. Surely it would make more sense to have the colour scheme the opposite way round? But then again, if a student is going to throw up, I imagine the last colour they would want to see is green.

"It's the third door on your left, after you take the first right corner, make sure you remember that, I won't tell you again" the Headmaster told me sternly, it was clear he wasn't going to accompany me any further on my journey, no doubt going back to whatever mundane and insignificant activities that he usually does whenever it's a school day. I curtly nodded in reply, it was the quickest way to get rid of this man. At the moment, I just really wanted to get home as quickly as possible, I had had enough of social interaction for today, these people annoyed me to no end. I wondered if I was going to last for the rest of the term, or if I would end up hitting yet another person.

I turned away from him, walking silently down the endless corridor until I came across the offshoot to the right that he mentioned.

"Third door on the left," I mumbled to myself, seeing it straight away, it was the last one along in the corridor, and had a big enough sign on it. Approaching, I prepared myself for a very wasted hour of my life. Whoever this person was, they wouldn't be any help, they probably won't even be care that much, just feigning interest as it's part of a well paying job.

I stood in front of the door, I sighed heavily, lifting my hand up to knock on the wood. Before my knuckles made contact with the wood, the soft voice of a woman emerged from the room, my only thought was how stereotypical it was. Entering the room, the stereotype went even further. There sat the source of the voice, she had fine, silver glasses, which framed her light green emerald eyes, above which sat a pair of perfectly sculpted eyebrows. Her blond hair was straightened, her side fringe swept so it leant slightly over the frame of her glasses on the right side. Her porcelain skin was only tainted by a single, small beauty mark, situated just above her rose lips on the left side.

"Hello, if you would please take a seat, Hiccup?" She smiled kindly, and used her hand to gesture to the seat opposite to her desk.

I sighed heavily yet again, throwing my bag down roughly, and ended up collapsing into the chair. She didn't change her happy expression, instead just looking at me.

"Thank you for coming even though it's lunch time, most students would have gone home if this had happened to them. By the way, my name is Miss Roberts, but you can call me Sandra if you want."  
It had never once crossed my mind that I could simply walk out, I had technically attended the full day of school now. And as for the name, I'll stick with Miss Roberts, no use getting chummy with someone who's going to be poking the dirty and secretive corners of my mind.

"Now then Hiccup, I know roughly what has happened, but not the cause for it, you've skipped school for a weak, most likely starving yourself judging by how you look slightly gaunt, and you were not sleeping regularly, those bags under your eyes tell me that. This lack of sleep has lead to you being easily irritable, although because of your innate stubborn personality, you refuse to give in to them, and you don't always let out your frustration, however when you get to an absolute boiling point, you explode, as Astrid found out earlier."

The mention of her name caused me to involuntarily curl my hand into a fist, and it wasn't helped by the fact that she was more or less right about everything that she mentioned, I hadn't been here more than a minute, and she already knew most of my afflictions by taking a simple glance at my face..

She noticed my reaction her eyes locking onto my fist as if they were zooming in on it. They suddenly ripped themselves away, caused by her jotting down a note on her paper, "So, why did you do what you did to her?"

I couldn't tell if this was another of her tactics, or it was really that hard for her to see that I simply hated the girls guts.

"I did it because she deserved it," I whispered, my words were big, but my voice was frail, making me seem ridiculous.

She nodded slowly, as if analysing the situation, then, yet again, jotting down some more notes, "She bullies you doesn't she?" I nodded hesitantly, "What about?"

I remained silent, I know this was her job, to find out things and try to help, but she really didn't throw her punches, getting straight down to business. I wasn't at all comfortable around her.

She leaned back in her chair, her face still unchanged, she was a master at faking an expression, I almost believed that she was always this cheerful and easy going, but I knew that was impossible. No one is happy all the time.

She leaned forward, staring at me intently, "Hiccup, I can't help if you don't help me to understand, now what did she bully you about? Was it how you look, the way you act or speak, something you did in the past, your sexuality?"

My eyes involuntarily grew larger on the last suggestion, as much I tried to remain unreadable, talking about this subject still made me feel awkward, as it usually ended in ridicule aimed towards me.

"I'll take that as a sign it was the last one," yet again she scribbled something down, was she going to do that for everything we said?

"Now, is it because of the fact that you like a certain sex or only something relating to that?"  
I remained quiet, "Hiccup," I looked over at her, she was still calm and collected, "Please let me in, you will never solve your problems if you don't open up about them, I can help you, in fact, you'll find almost anyone can help you, you just have to trust them enough to open yourself to them."

I must admit, as cheesy as that was, the more I entertained her, the quicker I could leave and get my detention finished, so I decided to humour her.

"It's because I was pretty much the only boy she knows who has never once had an inkling of affection for her, and I think she is jealous of me for being close to Jack."

"I see, now who is this Jack? What is he to you and her?"  
"He's my boy... no he's..."

She didn't write that down, instead just nodding, "I'm guessing from the time you took off, whatever relationship the two of you have has become strained. Because you've become so withdrawn, you're attempting to hide from almost anyone who you know, hoping time will pass quicker and easier if you do, it's a common trait in people with depression."

It was somewhat comforting to have someone who knew so much talk to me, but at the same time, it was unsettling, I have never been one for opening up to people. It made me nervous to know just how much someone like her could find out from what I thought were a few harmless words that would give nothing of importance away.

I sat there, thinking what I could say to appease her without giving any more away, but she is a smart minded women, analytical and calculating. The second she sees that nothing is getting revealed, she'll swap tactics, most likely without me knowing, getting exactly what she wants from me. She was clever at using leading words and detecting slight changes in a person's expression or body language. Hell, even staying rigid was a sign for her, it meant that I really wanted to avoid the topic, meaning that was the sweet spot she had to probe at.

"Now then Hiccup, today's event seemed like it was fuelled by a bit more than simply rivalry between the two of you, if it was, it would've escalated slowly, it couldn't have made you lash out suddenly like you did, there would be signs. This makes me think she said something more to you, whether knowingly or not, she overstepped her boundaries somewhere."

I stared at her, I hadn't even said anything on that topic yet, and she was already figuring the story out.

"Now, you're the type of boy who really doesn't care what people think about him, especially when you are like what you are now. So the attack wasn't on you, but someone you cared about dearly, perhaps Jack, or most likely a relative?"

She was too good at her job, she wasn't a human, she was a machine that just formulated theories. My grip tightened subconsciously on the chairs arm, which I mentally smacked myself for when I noticed it, but not before she did.

Giving a triumphant smile, she finally started writing again, "So it was a relative. Was it a sibling, or perhaps your father, or your mother?"

I hung my head to look at my knees at the mention of my parents, this women didn't need my help, I was like an open book to her, it was only making me more depressed. It meant she had seen others like me countless times, and that I was just the same as them, she already knew the answer and could hurry to the finish.

"So, your parents then, but which one, or was it both?"  
"Both, but my mother's dead," I mumbled lowly, refusing to lift my head up, "because of me."

This piqued her interest substantially, "Sorry, but you said your mother is dead because of you?"

I nodded tears threatening to flow from my eyes. I imagine that she saw my state as she handed me a box of tissues after scrawling another note in her book, and the closing it.

"We'll continue this tomorrow, Hiccup, for now you time for today is up."

Great, so you get me to the point of feeling my worst, making me believe myself to be like everything else you've seen before, and then just when I feel like it's useless to resist, you drop it? Was this meant to be comforting, or are you just bored?

I looked up at the tissues, taking one a using it to dry my eyes, and then proceed to look up at her. Unlike what I would expect, she was not flicking through notes, or looking as if she was in a rush to leave, she was just smiling at me in a reassuring way.

"Don't worry, we'll be taking this slowly. I don't want you to get worked up to the point that you can't think. That'll be even more dangerous and would defeat the object of trying to help you."

There's that word again: help. The more she says it the more she makes me believe that that might be all she is really trying to do. This is dangerous.

"Now, Hiccup, I suggest that you eat something substantial tonight, and get a good's night sleep, it'll help keep your emotions in check, and maybe you can hide them a bit better then!" She winked at me in a child like manner. I almost felt like laughing. Almost.

"Now, then, you're free to leave, see you tomorrow," She had no idea how false that statement was, I was not free in any sense or stretch of the imagination. I walked out of her office, bidding her goodbye, and walking towards back to those strange red doors. After I passed through them, I asked Miss Potts where I was to go for my detention, she simply said that the librarian had been informed about it, and would tell me when my hour was up.

* * *

The library is right at the back of the school. It felt strange walking around the site when it was practically deserted, the only people I saw were a few teachers in their rooms, and even they were getting ready to leave soon. However, no matter how alone I was, I couldn't shake the feeling that someone was watching me. But every time I checked over my shoulder, there was no one in sight; I even doubled back one time, and I still found nothing. I don't know if it was just because I had never been in the school when it was empty, or if I was just becoming delusional. I had no idea either way, but I was certain that neither were on my bucket list.

"Great, now I'm becoming paranoid too, just what I need," I mumbled grimly to myself.

I passed through the library doors, they were definitely much more impressive and professional than the lacklustre and simple doors which led to the Head's office, instead these had intricate carvings of books, every detail painstakingly done with care by the carver. Every page was visible in each individual book, and while words were not carved, the different length scribbles gave the illusion that they were.

Carefully closing the door behind me, I was immediately set upon by the librarian.

"You are late, I expect you to be punctual if you are to take up my time due to your ineptitude."

My first thought was that Miss Potts hadn't told me the exact truth, this man did not know what was actually going on, he thought I was just another delinquent.

He loomed over me, as did most other people at this school, furrowing his white eyebrows at me, highlighting the wrinkles around his mouth as it contorted into a slight sneer. His long black jacket made him look gothic and old aged, slightly like a vampire, which I guessed was appropriate as he never, well, rarely, went out into the sun, which was the cause of his pastel white skin. His hair was slicked back, looking like a wig, making him look even older than he was.

"You know what to do, so get to it. I will not be there to spoon feed you any answers," he declared unsympathetically, turning and disappearing into the seemingly endless stacks of books.

I stood where I was for a couple of seconds, glaring at where the man once stood.

"Well, what a nice man," I said to no one in particular, yet I could swear I heard someone snigger quietly. I looked behind me, checking down the first couple of rows of books, if somebody was near me, they had quickly disappeared. I had an inkling who it was, but no, they would never come here, still this is getting on my nerves.

"This is getting really old really fast," I was sure I had a stalker now.

I set my books down on the first table that I found, and went off in search of my appropriate books, which were waiting to be discovered amongst the endless piles of useless, and never used, ones. There were books which had never seen the light of day, or felt the touch of a student's fingers, and yet the school insisted on keeping them. As far as I'm concerned, they're a fire hazard, they should just be cleared away to make room for new, more relevant ones. Oh well, as long as I can find the ones I need, than it doesn't matter to me.

I finally found my first book, an English one. It was about the poet Robert Browning, and how his poem's were exceedingly critical of the social hierarchy in the Victorian period, holding many well known examples, such as "My Last Duchess", "The Laboratory", and "Porphyria's Lover". All of them were about how a woman would end up dead, usually at the hand of her male lover, but sometimes the death came from another, most notably a jealous love rival. I flicked through the book, making sure it was definitely the one I needed, and walked back to the table, setting it down when I got there. It would be best if I take this one subject at a time.

I spent a good thirty minutes reading the book, and the next writing my analysis of the poem's.

I read my essay to myself in my head:

"The Laboratory, written by Robert Browning, has a very interesting portrayal of the power of women. The narrator of the poem plots to poison a love rival in order to gain the attention of her love interest, contemplating how she can "carry pure death in an earring, a casket, a signet, a fan-mount, a filigree-basket." Like in Browning's other poem's, an example my Last Duchess where the narrator kills his wife to gain power and control over her, death is associated with power, and so this means that the woman is contemplating that she can become all the more powerful in society by killing, or having the potential to kill, anyone who she so wishes in a discrete manner. Alternatively in Browning's other poems death is brought by physical means, like in Poryphia's Lover where the man strangles Poryphia with her own hair. Contrasting this, poison is not a physical means of death. This shows how women were not as physically dominant as men in the Victorian era, and had to find other ways of gaining power or influence, such as poison.

What is also interesting about this particular poem is that the narrator's actions are still being controlled by the man who she wishes to attract. This is shown by the line "she ensnared him", displaying that the auditor does not believe the man is at fault at all and that she is almost freeing him in a sense from some sort of spell placed on him by her love rival. The fact the man is seen as innocent in her eyes drives her to heinous deeds, all of which are down to him. Browning did this to subtly show the fact that even when Victorian women believe that they are in power, or about to gain power, they are still at the mercy of men."

I sighed, and hit my head on the table, then leaned back on two chair legs, earning me a look off of a blonde haired girl who was looking in the romance row beside me, silly girl, real life was nothing like those books, they won't help you find a partner. Anyway, the problem with the essay was that it just so greatly different from what was usually expected of someone of m skill level, but for now it would have to do, I wasn't going to spend any longer on this than I had too. That, and my brain had kind of shut down during my weeks absence, it still hadn't completely turned back on yet, so it should be expected that this wasn't going to be my best work. Logging that thought away, I sluggishly got up and placed my book back roughly where it belonged, so sue me if I hadn't put it in exactly the same place, the jerk that runs this place can sort that out. I went to the front desk, picking up my slightly reduced pile of unfinished papers as I went, putting my completed work into my folder in my bag.

"It's been an hour now, sir, can I go now?"

"No, you may not, it has not been exactly one hour total yet." My eyebrow twitched as my jaw clenched, this man was far too punctual for his own good. "If we are not punctual and to the letter, we cannot expect to succeed, you should even stay past your allotted time, that is, if you wish to have any hope of succeeding in the future. Only the dedicated are prosperous."

"Fine, how long has it been then, I want to get home sometime today?"

He glared at me yet again, "It has been fifty eight minutes and fifty seconds since your entrance, but you may go. I can't stand having one with a bad of an attitude as you in my library."

I couldn't care less that the reason for it was negative, at least I could finally go home now. Or at least I hoped I could.

* * *

I exited the library, and as soon as I did, I yet again felt watched. This was not creepy, or cute, or even funny, it was annoying, if you were going to follow me, then at least make sure you don't give off vibes. I heard a twig snap behind me, and someone swear under their breath. I knew right away who it was.

Without turning around, I spoke up, "Jack, stop hiding, I know you've been following me ever since I left the common room. If you're going to try and ever be a stalker, I would seriously reconsider." My voice was laced with annoyance and aggravation, this is all that idiot Headmaster's fault. If only he hadn't practically announced my return to the whole school, then Jack would have no idea that I was back.

I heard someone walk out from behind a corner, and sure enough there was Jack, but he was not holding his usual look of joy and mischief on his face. No, this time he wore a mask of hurt, added with a hint of anger.

"So you know all along."

I rolled my eyes, making the movement large so that he would see. I had just said that, had I not?

He walked up to me until he was directly in front of me, "So? What do you want then?"

He let out a choked sound, shocked at my question, then he grew angry, "What the hell? What I want is for my boyfriend to tell me why he hasn't come to school for the past week? Why he has made every effort that he can to avoid me? What I want is for my boyfriend to get over himself and tell me what the fuck is wrong with him! Have I pissed you off or something? If I have, what the hell have I done, because I can't think of it?"

He took a step closer, giving me a long, hard look, "God, Hiccup, your so skinny, more than usual, what have you done to yourself, you look half dead?"

I stood there calmly, my face deadpan, waiting for him to finish his emotional rant, "Are you done, Jack?"

He backed up a bit, repeating his chocked sound, "What the hell has happened to you? You've always been a bit bitchy, but this is just cruel, this isn't you Hiccup! I heard that some kid even headbutted Astrid in the face earlier, but because I never saw you all day, I didn't know it was you until I heard some teachers mention your name! I had to find out from the freaking teachers Hiccup! I thought that as your boyfriend I could be trusted enough to know what was troubling you!"

"Jack, you're going to attract attention if you don't quieten down, and attention from everybody is the last thing I want right now." I didn't mention it, but the thought crossed my mind that we can hardly be classified as boyfriends, we agreed to date, then didn't see each other for a week straight after.

We started walking, and when I say we, I mean I started walking while Jack was biting at my ankles.

"Hiccup, just let me help! "Please let me help, you will never get to the bottom of what's making you act so troubled if you don't open up to people. You can't beat them alone!" He grabbed my arm and swung me about forcefully. It looked like a scene from a bad romance movie. I was slightly shocked, he sounded just like the psychiatrist, Miss Roberts.

I stared at him, a bit starry eyed if I must admit, but I quickly got over it. I ripped my arm away, and took a step back away from him, causing him to look thoroughly confused.

"Fine then, Jack, you really want to know?"

He nodded, "Of course, that's what I've been saying!"  
"Then at second free period tomorrow, wait for me outside the main office, if your late, I'm not waiting for you."

He nodded, looking a little hurt, "Why the main office?"

"You'll find out tomorrow."

I turned away again, and continued to walk home.

But then I stopped, without turning back, "Thanks for doing my geography, Jack."  
He smiled, "Sure thing, Hic."

I carried on my way home.

**That essay might just be the most boring thing in this whole story, but a fun fact is that it is a shortened extract from one of my real A level essays!**

**Thanks for reading :)**


	10. Stay The Night

It was now the second free period of the day, right before we get to go home. Where was Jack you ask? He was late, as I expected, but what I didn't expect was for him not to be in the whole day. I stood there, in front of the red doors, back against the walls, frowning heavily at the wall opposite wall. Why did I ever expect him to be on time? And yet, despite my frustration, I could not leave him behind, for the door was locked, and Miss Potts refused to open it for some reason unknown to me.

"So, why won't you open this damn door, Miss Potts?" I looked over at her, my scowl heavy with annoyance.

She looked up slowly, her face calm, "Because, I made a deal, don't worry he assured me he would be in today."

Why does everyone always feel the need to be as cryptic as humanly possible? It was really annoying, not to mention useless, half the time the answer was so obvious, but not this time. Who would make a deal with her, I'm the only student who really talks to her, or at least I used to.

"You're going to make me late, you know that right?" I questioned her, hoping for her to concede and let me past.

"Well, not by that much, here comes my partner now," She looked out towards the glass doors, and there was Jack, running up the path, looking slightly exhausted. He stopped half way along the path, bending over to rest his arms on his knees for support. After regaining his breath, he slowly walked the rest of the way.

He opened the door in a bit of a hurry, not realising that it was a push door, and not a pull one. It was quite comedic, or at least it would be if my time wasn't being wasted. Miss Potts looked over at him, smiling brightly, strange, she never smiles like that at students other than me.

"Your late, just as I thought Jack, I up kept my end of the deal, now you keep yours," again with the cryptic sayings.

"Thanks Miss P," her gaze hardened a bit at the nickname, she always was a professional woman at heart.

He turned from her, walking over to me nonchalantly, as if he had done nothing wrong.

"Hey, Hicc-"

"You're late."

He recoiled a bit, what was he hoping for? Me to thank him for wasting my time?

"And yet you still waited."

"I had no choice, Miss Potts wouldn't open the door."

He looked over at her, giving her a cheeky smile, then turned back to me, "Yeah, that was my fault again, she asked me to do something, and I agreed, if she held you here in the case of me being late."

He scratched the back of his head nervously, giving me another grin, I did not return it.

I sighed grumpily, turning back to the woman who was now in my bad books, "Right, can we go now?"

She nodded, clicking a button which unlocked the door. I walked through it quickly, not holding it for Jack.

We walked down the corridor quietly, at least until we got to the corner, that's when Jack spoke up.

"Sorry I was late, my car broke down, so I had to walk the rest of the way while they repaired it, but first I had to stay and fill out a bunch of forms, but the forgot the pen, so we had to wait for someone to bring us one. And then to top everything off, the papers kept blowing away, so we had to chase them down too."

I looked at him incredulously, "Well, that was certainly eventful for you.

I did feel slightly special though. He really walked the whole way to school, even when his car was broken down, just to come to a meeting about me? It was slightly sweet, and yet the thought remained, why not get a bus?

I nodded at him, mumbling a small thank you, earning another grin, although this one was much bigger than the last, I suppose it helped that I actually said something mildly nice to him.

We stood in front of the door, this time Jack was about to knock when Miss Roberts spoke up, yet again. How did she know whenever I was at her door? I checked around to see if she had a camera in the wall, yet found nothing. I turned back, and Jack was already in the room, both of them introducing themselves.

I walked in, and heard that Jack had already called her Sandra, he was so quick to be friendly with everyone.

She looked up at me, "Now the Hiccup, I already know what Jack's doing here, Miss Potts told me."

Wait, I invited Jack, so how did everyone seem to know what he was doing here, and for a completely different reason than what I knew?

I took my seat, "Shall we get this done then?"

The blonde nodded in reply, picking my notes out her top draw, "Right, we'll pick up where we left off," she said, still rummaging through the draw, "Ah, there we are."

Jack found her antics mildly amusing, chuckling at her care free persona.

She straightened up, looking me dead in the eye, "So on our last appointment you said that your mother was dead because of you?"

"What?" Jack exclaimed, shocked at the revelation.

Miss Roberts turned to him, "Please just go along with whatever happens, I'm sure Hiccup will explain fully after we finish here."

She looked back at me, "So, what exactly did you do to cause the death of you mother?"  
"I killed her."

Her expression remained unchanged, while Jack looked almost terrified. He opened his mouth to speak but the woman behind the desk managed to convince him out of it. Wow, so she can glare if she wants.

"Yes, you mentioned you were the cause of her death, but how exactly is what I'm asking?"

"She got run over because of me, I failed to listen to her and ran away towards the house, into the road. I didn't even check, and she got hit by a truck, breaking her neck."

She looked at me strangely, probably running over facts in her head. Jack just fidgeted in his seat, obviously uncomfortable with the situation.

"So, I'm guessing that you've only just found out about this? Otherwise you would have always acted this way, but you've only been doing this within the past week." There she goes again, figuring everything out.

I nodded, "My Dad was there with my cousin, he held my mother in his arms as she bled out onto the road, already dead. Then last week, when I asked about Mum, he told me all about it, blaming me for it, and he was right. I think he's become an alcoholic in the last week."

She scrawled her first few notes of the session down, "So, my question is, what brought up your curiosity about your mother, was it a long term build up that just came out, or was it caused by a recent event?"

Jack turned in his seat, getting a better view of me, still saying nothing. Yet, that did not comfort me, it only meant I would be bombarded with question when we left.

Sighing I answered her question, "Recently, I have been having nightmares, mostly of my Mother, taunting me over her death. Of course then, I didn't know it was my fault, but in my last one, she openly tormented me. At first she was ragged and dead, even breaking her own neck, but in my last one, she was pure, like a painting."

I continued to tell them the grim details of each of my nightmares, describing how I was tormented by Mother and Pitch, how I was in a world of darkness and fear, and how the people I cared so closely about were apparently telling me they could never love me, telling them every word the wretched copies of Mother, Father and Jack told me. Jack especially disliked that part, getting up from his chair and walking to the back of the room for a short time.

When I finished my story, I was leaning over on my knees, head in my hands, with Jack's arm draped over my shoulder, giving me a firm squeeze every now and then.

I cleared my throat upon the third squeeze and looked upon Miss Roberts. Her face was... blank. Not in shock, but she was just looking. The more she stayed like that, the more I believed this was her true face, and that the other side of her was just a farce.

She stared emotionlessly as me for a while longer before she eventually spoke again, "Well, Hiccup, upon hearing your story, it's very obvious what is wrong here, and what is causing you to act the way you are."

I held my breath and looked up, "It is?"

She interweaved her fingers together, placing her chin on them, her eyes practically giggling with excitement.

"Yes, you see, this is all about your feeling of guilt towards the situation, even before you actually knew about the events surrounding your mother's demise."

I cringed at the word demise, earning another squeeze from Jack, it was such a strong word. In my mind even death or murder was a better choice.

"This Pitch character, he is the embodiment of your guilty subconscious, which remembers the memories the consciousness doesn't. In this case, they were surfacing for an unknown reason. This guilt is then further projected through the projection of your mother, using the most recent memory of her that you held in your mind."

She paused allowing for me to absorb all the information. I looked towards Jack, he just smiled slightly at me.

"What about the fake versions of Jack and my Dad?"

She looked as if her interest was about to overflow, "Well, they are the embodiment of your fear of the future, what your Dad would become after reflecting upon the situation, and the fact that you thought Jack might reject you if he found out about your mother, showing you fear about the fragility of your relationship."

I sat up straighter, our relationship is... fragile? I returned my gaze to Jack, he looked slightly saddened upon hearing that.

"However, while I cannot help your Dad through you, I would have to meet him, I can help the two of you with your problem."

This time it was Jack's turn to question her, "How?" he asked, rather quickly.

"Well," she paused, "The two of you are going to have to spend some," she paused again, thinking of the correct way to phrase it.

"Quality time together."

I choked on my own spit. Was she suggesting what I think she was? No, she can't be, we are at a psychiatrists, not a sex help class.

I soon saw that I wasn't the only one who was embarrassed, Jack had a deep blush on his face, more crimson than a rose, but then he started chuckling slightly.

"A-are you saying what we think you're saying?" he questioned her.

"Well, if you think I'm saying that the two of you should have some sort of sexual activity to strengthen your bond with each other, you'd be right, it doesn't have to be sex though, kissing would work just as fine."

Jack's giggling seemed to die down.

"But sex works better," she added.

And there's the chuckling again.

We left the room, I couldn't even look at the chuckling boy next to me we hadn't even kissed yet, how were we going to do... that?

Jack looked over to me and stopped, opening his  
mouth every few seconds, but his laugher kept interrupting whatever he wanted to say.

I just nodded at him and carried on walking back towards the schools exit.

We passed Miss Potts, who looked up innocently.

"So, how did it go, she didn't make you do anything did she?"

Jack laughed yet again, "Well, she suggested doing some... exercises together, getting the blood pumping!"

I slapped my hand to my face, "Jack, she meant did we do any activities together."

The last word seemed to only worsen the situation, "Yeah, well she did mention an activity to do in the future!"

Miss Potts was very clearly lost, and I was getting very pissed off.

We walked back to the front of the school, I almost asked Jack if he could drive me home, forgetting that his car had broken down. So we just walked.

"Jack?"

Yeah, what's up, Hic?"

"Thanks for coming with me today, it was nice of you."

He walked so that he was in front of me, "You still think it's your fault, don't you?"

I looked away from him, "Slightly, yeah." I admit, I was feeling slightly less guilty, but not innocent either.

He grew angry very quickly, "Hiccup! What the hell! We just sat through an hour of crap because of this! We can safely say that your Mother's death was not your fault, she died to save you!"

I flung my arms out as I turned rapidly, "How would you know anything? You weren't even there! She died trying to get me out the way of a truck, Jack! A truck I ran in front of!"

He walked closer to me, our bodies barely apart from the others.

"Because Hiccup, I don't need to have been there. I know you, and you would never hurt anyone, hell you don't even step on a spider when you see one, so you certainly wouldn't kill your mother."

I tried to look to the floor and hide my tears, but he grabbed the sides of my face, crouching slightly so that we were at eye level.

"But you need to stop blaming yourself for this, your mother died a hero, and she wouldn't want to see her son wasting his whole life over this. Are you going to let her down?"

Great, tackle my guilt with more guilt. But he did have a point, my Mother did die a hero.

I shook my head as best I could in his hands, "No," I whispered weakly.

My eyes were heavy with tears, and I'm sure they were sparkling in the light, my bottom lip quivering slightly, this has been the first time I cried since a week ago.

Jack looked my over, raising his eyebrows as he lowered his head to look in my eyes. When he was sure I was telling the truth, he nodded, looking as if he was trying to convince himself more than me.

"Good, now hold still," he whispered back.

"Wait, what are you-"

But I never finished my question, for Jack had placed his soft lips upon mine. They were slightly cold and wet, but felt as smooth as silk, blessing my own lips, which were shockingly still at the moment. Not that Jack's were moving in any fashion, but they had a purpose, while mine just sat there, surprised. My eyes widen as Jack's closed, both of us breathed heavily through our nose, but for different reasons. Me in shock, and Jack seemingly in bliss.

He poked my lower lip with his tongue, and I visibly tensed, as hard as a rock, this was our first kiss, no actually, this was my first kiss period. And to make matters worse, it was totally unexpected, just thrown upon me. It's not that it wasn't bad, but it was still a shock, which meant I couldn't react how I wanted. I made a strange gurgling sound in the back of my throat when Jack poked my lip a second time, which he obviously heard, it was quite loud after all.

I relaxed slightly when he backed away slowly, reopening his sapphire eyes, staring at me lustfully.

I turned my head sideways, looking at him from the corner of my eyes, "So, what happened to when _we _were ready?"

He looked at me bashfully, "Well, truth be told, I've never kissed anyone before, so I didn't know how to do it, or when. I guess I just made it awkward and horrible."

Well, awkward was an understatement, "I-it wasn't horrible," I blushed and looked towards the ground he seemed to perk up, "But yeah, it was awkward."

He deflated.

We walked out the school gates together, heading for our respective homes, but Miss Robert's words were ringing in my mind. I need to strengthen my relationship with Jack if I don't want to lose him, my mother's death wasn't my fault, Pitch is my guilt given form. There were too many thoughts at the moment, but I had to deal with at least one, whichever was the easiest.

I turned around, watching Jack walk away from me, was it really like she said in that room? Was out relationship really that fragile? Well, if I was ever going to get better, I had to become more like myself again, and the past me would never give up, but I am not myself at the moment, so I'll have to wait.

I walked away from him, but stopped upon hearing my name "Hiccup?"

I stopped, and turned, looking a bit shocked that he had called out for me unexpectantly. I guess after what just happened though, this was nothing, "Huh, yeah?"

"Do you wanna come round to my place? Well, we certainly weren't going to mine, not while Dad was still in his state.

I nodded slightly, unsure if this was a good thing to do or not.

He lit up like a Christmas tree, as if he was about to dance on the spot, maybe this really was a bad idea.

We entered the house a long time later, I'm sure it wasn't that far last time I came here, maybe it was just because we had taken the car that time. I was still uncertain about this, but it was something I had to do. Yet I couldn't move from the door frame.

Jack turned around and laughed faintly "Is this going to be your thing every time you come here, you can come in you know?"

I tentatively put one foot in front of the other, entering the living room for the second time in my life, all my thoughts were centred around being anxious. What was going to happen tonight was Jack really going to try and act upon Miss Robert's advice. Was I going to follow it? I want to say no, but if that was true, I wouldn't have come here in the first place.

"Jack, not being rude or anything, but, why did you suddenly want me to come over?" I questioned him, standing across the room from me, one arm behind his back.

"Erm, well, because I I thought we should spend more time together, we are dating after all."

"Well, what do you want to do then?"

"Well,I know you don't want to lose at dancing again, so we can't do that."

My eye twitched, "Jack, it was a draw, anyway, if there was another round, I would have won for sure, but before you ask, no, I don't want to dance."

"Then, what do you want to do?"

"Well, we could do what most normal people actually do, talk."

He scrunched up his nose at this idea, "Come on Jack, let's face it, we don't really know that much about each other, do we?"

"Yeah, we do. We talked on the first day we met!"

"Okay then, what's my favourite colour?"

Silence, he looked around the room, hoping to find it, but I can assure you, neither blue, white or black are my favourite.

He turned back to me, "Fine, I'll do it."

He huffed loudly and threw himself on the sofa, "But, I'm asking you first."

I sat down next to him, not making quite as big a scene, "Jack this isn't twenty questions."

He looked up in thought for a second, "No, we are not playing that."

The conversation was slow at the star, it was mostly mundane things like our favourite foods and colours, mine turning out to be purple, and Jack's was white, surprise, surprise. But the talk eventually picked up, we said about where Jack grew up, if either of us have had any pets other than the ones we have now, when our birthdays were. As it turned out, they were within a week of each other.

In the end, we just ended up talking about the most random of things.

"So, out of all the Disney villains, Cruella was obviously the best."

I looked down at him, Jack was upside down on the sofa, his face turning red from the blood rushing to his head.

"Really? I thought you would like a manlier villain."  
"Yeah, because Disney villains just reek of masculinity, don't they?"

"Well, that Stromboli guy was pretty manly."

"Who the hell is this Stromboli person?"  
Well, obviously not a very good Disney fan, "He was the bad puppeteer in Pinocchio."  
"Oh, him! He didn't even count as a villain, seriously the whale had a bigger part than him, and it was only his insides!"

I chuckled slightly, as silly as it was, these random talks were lifting my spirits a bit. Or maybe it was just Jack. I stared at him, watching as his face continued to get more red with each passing second.

"I bet you can't last thirty more seconds like that."

"You're on" he retorted with a smirk, confident in his victory.

I started to count in my head, looking out the window as I did, and saw that it was snowing.

"Jack, look outside, it's snowing."

He did as I said, and instantly ran to the window, falling over his feet on the way. He really is like a big kid, just an incredibly tall one that loves advanced geography to the point he will do other people's work.

"Hiccup, come and watch, it's so cool! I love watching the snow set at night."

I walked up, and tried to see out the narrow window, but there was one problem.

"Jack, your body is blocking the view." His back was not overly interesting.

He moved to the side, and let me stood in front of him. I looked out the window, watching the snow set. I had to admit, Jack was right, it was beautiful. Each flake fell at a slow speed, but the sheer amount of flakes meant that the snow was building up quickly.

"Hey, just so you know, I just won the bet." I said with a triumphant tone.

Yet there was no defeated sounding reply, what was he doing back there? Or had he just realised what I said?

My vision changed it's focus, and I saw that Jack was staring at me in the window. And apparently he saw me looking at him. We stared at each other for a couple more seconds, during which more snow continued to fall. Even in the glass, his eyes still shined a bright, brilliant blue, while mine were a dull, calm brown, which paled in comparison to his in terms of life and wonder.

I slowly took my eyes away, returning to stare at the snow, yet he continued to stare. Why was he staring at me with such eyes.

He put his arms around my neck, resting his head on my shoulder. His breath tickled my neck, and his eyes were burning the side of my face.

"You know Hiccup, with you in the state you are, I can't let you walk home in this, you could do something rash and horrible."

Well, his bashful personality from earlier had evaporated, he was back to being as subtle as a bomb.

"What about my Dad, I can't leave him alone."

He snuggled his face closer to mine, his words now playing at my ears, "Well, it was your choice to come here, and your Dad is a grown man after all. But you, you wanted to build our bond to be stronger."

With all the actions he was doing, it was as he was playing with me, seeing how long I would last before I melt into putty in his arms, all his to play with.

"Jack, I... I don't know if.." but he moved his head forward looked into my eyes, daring me to say no, but I couldn't. Those orbs of exquisite blue enraptured my mind, making me think about a crisp winter morn, or the first snow of the year.

I conceded, I just couldn't resist those eyes, I couldn't keep my defences up if I tried. But what about Dad, he needed to be taken care of, right now he was probably in a worse state then me, but if what Miss Robert's said is true, she can help him, and this will help my relationship with Jack after all.

With a weak and pitiful voice, I admitted my defeat, "A-alright."

He gave me a victorious smile, and kissed my cheek multiple times, and giving my ear a kiss once. The last kiss, the one on the ear, was a bit more daring than that of the others, incorporating a quick and slight nibble in the space of a second. Jack led me back to the sofa, where we sat close together, and continued to talk late into the night about more personal, yet entirely irrelevant subjects, eventually going to Jack's bedroom when it was late in the night, in a slightly tender and loving mood.

We walked slowly into the room, Jack holding me close to his body by my waist, kissing me gently on the lips and cheeks, and me, awkwardly kissing back. I slightly panicked again when he poked my lip with his tongue, as he did earlier, but this time, I swallowed my fear, and let him in. It surprised me, for Jack did not rush into my mouth, the taste of his warm wet tongue exploding onto my taste buds. No, he was too busy smiling to put it in, to happy that I was allowing him to act upon whatever lust he was storing inside.

But, when he did enter my mouth, he certainly made his presence known to me, smashing his tongue into mine, all the while, his hands were tracing the length of my body, mine getting tangled in his hair. The kiss was messy, noisy and wet. But it was good, temporarily making me forget my troubles. Saliva dripped down my chin, and I didn't even know whose it was, as I let out a heavy moan, which seemed to jerk Jack into life.

He threw me down onto the bed, making me release a pathetically high pitched squeaking noise, as Jack crawled back over me. He stared into my eyes, breathing heavily, before descending upon my collar bone.

I became momentarily confused, "J-Jack, what are-"

But then my voice left me as Jack began to suck and nip, making me squirm beneath his ever exploring hands. I brought his head up back to mine, and placed a passionate kiss on his lips, then looked down, and saw a red mark where he one was.

He smiled yet again into the kiss, and then sat up straight on my lap, looking at me lying there, both of us thoroughly out of breath, which we were desperately trying to regain.

Then, his breathing levelled out, as he took off his top, revealing his bare chest. It was not super toned with rippling muscles, but it was no doubt impressive, Jack's seemingly porcelain skin almost looking as if it glistened in the dark,

He crawled back over me, and stopped by my ear, "Hiccup, take off your clothes, or I might just have to tear them off myself."

I did as he asked, and events escalated from there.

**Okay, that was average, but I really am unsure about the kissing part. Blast my awkward ways preventing me from experiencing it! **

**If anyone has some tips on how to improve, the chapter that is, not me and kissing, I will be happy to listen! **

**Oh, and yes, the last paragraph is meant to be extremely obvious, without being graphic... XD**


	11. The Morning After

** This will be my last update before Christmas, so Merry Christmas!**

**Also, the ending to the last chapter was altered so it now has details of what Jack and Hiccup did, the previous ending has been made the start to this chapter. Soooo anyone who read the first version, if you want some kissy kiss action, go back to the end of the last chapter!**

I awoke early the next morning, half five to be precise. I was feeling groggy, cold from being in just my boxers, and Jack's body was tangled on top of mine, it was not a great combination. I was in a completely different mood than last night. And unlike last time I was here, I remember every detail of last night. I was so pathetic, completely and utterly pathetic, Jack had all the control over me last during the events that transpired.

I used all the strength I had to role the heavy lump of a body over to his side of the bed, almost dropping him and having him fall back on one occasion. Once the bed hog was safely back where he belonged, I swung my legs out over the bedside, desperately needing a drink, my throat feeling dry and having an awful taste in it. But, as soon as I stood up, my legs immediately buckled under my own weight as if they were broken. I fell to the floor, yet still managing to grab the lamp on the locker next to the bed as I fell, having a vain hope that it would save me. I crashed down into the carpet, and the noise obviously woke up Jack.

He awoke, twisting around in the covers, and laughed at me pitifully as soon as he set his eyes upon me. I had fallen with all the grace of a hippopotamus, having my bottom straight up to the ceiling with my legs out behind me, and my face was firmly implanted into the carpet, looking as if I was attempting to plank and failed. Of course though, the lamp was perfectly fine, as I was holding it up in the air to save it from breaking, not wanting to be in debt to Jack. All in all, it was certainly one of the most un-natural positions I have ever been in.

"You know, I don't think that's how you turn on the light, Hic"

I remained face down in the carpet, mumbling something into the warm fabric that was itching at my nose.

"What was that, I couldn't hear you through the mouthful of carpet?"

I turned my face to the side, my cheek resting on the floor, "I said I blame you for this entirely, be more careful with me in the future will you?"

He lowered his lids seductively, his voice dripped with promiscuity, "So, there's going to be a next time then?"

I just turned my face back into the carpet. This was a bad idea.

"Oh, and can you put my lamp back now."

Yep, definitely a bad idea after all.

* * *

I laid there for a while longer, partly because I couldn't stand and partly because I just wanted to shrink into nothing from embarrassment. Another person had seen me naked, and what's worse, acted upon it. I just hope what we did last night wouldn't be something I would later come to regret.

I sat up and stretched my arms above my head, instantly noticing a new pain besides the one in my lower region. A fresh love bite was placed on my shoulder, as well as one on my collarbone... and my neck... and by my nipple. I growled slightly at the marks on my skin, apart from the neck, they would be easy to cover up, but still, I had not even marked Jack's skin. Well, if I did, I don't remember, but I secretly hope that I did.

Jack rose from the bed, having no clothes on at all. I stared at him, perhaps for a bit too long, as he turned and laughed slightly as he walked over to me, extending his hand.

"Are you going to spend the whole day down there?"

I groaned again, and grabbed his hand, using it to pull me up. I got half way to my feet, when my knees buckled again, and I fell into Jack.

"I might have already said this, but I blame you for this."

He laughed, and picked me up bridal style, like that day when we first met, "You mentioned."

He brought me into the living room, and placed me down onto the sofa, gently of course. If he did it roughly, buckling knees or not, I would kill him.

"Also, don't think this makes up for all the marks," I declared, gesturing to my multiple sores.

He looked at me blankly, eyebrows raised, before returning back to his usual grin, "Well, you seemed to like it last night, you kept squirming and moaning my name."

I blushed a deep scarlet, recalling the events.

He continued, looking down on me, "And it's not like you didn't leave some scratch marks on my back."

Okay, so that answers my earlier question.

He walked over to the kitchen, still naked, his feet pattering on the tiles.

He called out to me, voice echoing a bit, "What do you want me to cook you for breakfast?"

I looked towards the door, really, he wanted breakfast right now. Then again, I am pretty hungry.

Raising my hand to my mouth, I called back, "Toast will be fine."

I turned to look out the window, my head snapping back to the door a second later, "But put some clothes on first!"

He did as I asked, running back to the room, emerging a second later in his usual attire of a blue hoddie and beige jeans.

"Do you even own any other clothes, or do you just have a load of those?"

"No, I have the wonderful invention called the washing machine!"

I glared at him, surely he must have more than one of those clothes.

* * *

We at in relative silence, just watching the television. I couldn't really follow the plot of what was going on, at the moment all I knew was that the main characters are a man and woman who, travel a blue box, then they met a captain who somehow becomes immortal then turns into a big, massive head in a glass box.

"Jack, I cannot understand this at all, what is going on?"

He took a large bite of his toast, gulping it down noisily, "Well, this guy is an immortal man who belonged to a race that looked over time, and they have two hearts, he stole a box that travels through space after the species was destroyed in a time war by a race of aliens that look like salt and pepper pots called the Daleks. It's simple."

I gave him a look, one that told me he had lost me half way through his rambling.

He then turned to me suddenly, "Anyway, how come I had to put clothes on, and your still in your pants?"

I gave him another look, does he not remember how I got to this seat?

"Jack, I can't walk, and you didn't bring me out any clothes. Also, you were going to be using the toaster, which is hot, while naked. I didn't want you to burn your... little Jack."

He sputtered on his toast, "Hey, hey , hey. Little Jack?"

"Really, we're going to pick out that part?"

"Yes, we are. I don't call you small."

"Jack." I gave him my best look of irritation

He conceded, "Fine, I suppose it was nice that you were worried about me. Kinda."

"You're welcome, now can you get me some clothes? I'm starting to get chilly, and I hate being cold."

He rose, returning back to his room to get me some clothes. Hopefully they weren't too spread about the room so that he can't find them.

He came back about a minute later, holding items that clearly weren't my clothes.

I looked oddly at them, "These aren't mine."

He rubbed the back of his neck, "Yeah, well, your clothes are horrible, these will be better to keep you warm."

I looked at him, "Wow, so you weren't lying about owning other clothes."

He was holding a green and black striped cardigan, a plain black t-shirt, and black skinny jeans. I looked a bit punkish.

The feeling had mostly returned to my legs, and I managed to stand, although I walked with a limp, and had to have help from Jack when it came to getting dressed.

I looked myself over in the mirror once I had dressed, Jack watching from the doorway. I had to admit, these were quite warm.

"You are such a girl, Hic." He was leaning against the door frame. Despite his words, he seemed to be enjoying this more than me.

I stopped looking and turned to him and shrugged, "Hey, there's nothing wrong with that."

He laughed and went back to the living room.

* * *

We prepared an actual lunch for the day, and set off for school, walking there as Jack still had no car. It was painful, and I had to stop every so often, much to my annoyance, but Jack took it all in his stride.

"When is your appointment with Miss Roberts today?"

"Second period, I miss art for today, but that should be fine, I managed to do a lot two nights ago."

"Do you want me to be there again?"

I shook my head, "No. I want to do this alone this time."

He walked in front of me, stopping me, "Hiccup, didn't you listen to a word I had said yesterday?" He didn't look annoyed, just disappointed.

I rolled my eyes, "Jack, please, I can do it alone." I limped past him.

"Can you?"

I narrowed my eyes and turned back to him, "Yes, I can. Now come on, I'd like to get to school before I collapse again." I brushed past him, just wanting today to be over already.

* * *

We didn't really talk for the remaining time until my appointment, but Jack had to learn, this was my struggle, not his. Why did he constantly want to get involved? I only brought him along last time so that I wouldn't have to actually tell him, that and I got caught up in our argument. No. If anyone is going to do this, it has to be me. If I had a choice, I wouldn't even go to Miss Roberts, I would be entirely independent, but that's unrealistic.

When the bell rang, signalling the end of first period, I rose from my seat and gave Jack a look to say goodbye, which he returned, but he didn't smile like usual. It wasn't hiding any mischievous intentions, but looked disappointed almost. If it was about not coming along, he would just have to get over it, he can't always be there for me, as much as he would like to, it would just annoy me more.

I walked out the class and passed multiple faceless people in the corridor, occasionally bumping into a few of them, and then muttering a mumbled apology, even though it was their fault. I swear, I would probably say sorry to a table if I walked into it, or any inanimate object for that matter. Only on the odd occasion would someone actually apologise to me, others would just laugh, obviously doing it on purpose. Well, they would regret it in the future when they're begging me for money, alone and cold on the streets. As cruel as it sounds, that thought actually warmed my heart a little.

I entered the main office, approaching Miss Potts, who looked up at me with annoyance.

I sighed heavily, "What have I done now, are my eyes the wrong colour for everybody else in the school or something?"

She was not amused, and slammed her computer shut, "Hiccup, you don't even remember! You skipped your detention yesterday, now you have to stay for two hours after school today to make up for it."

I let out a frustrated groan, "Seriously? I've almost done all the work now. I cannot handle being near that creep of a librarian for two hours."

She glared harder, "That is a member of staff you are talking about, I suggest you hold your tongue. Now, get in there and sort out whatever is wrong with your head!"

I hit the counter, making her jump, "You know Miss Potts, I used to think that you were different from all the other pricks in this school, but no, you're exactly the same. Now open that damn door, or are you going to make me wait for another student again?"

To say she was speechless would be an understatement, but she opened the door nonetheless.

I stalked through the door to Miss Roberts's room, and slammed myself down into the seat, immediately regretting doing so, my backside still hadn't recovered properly.

She looked up in shock, eyebrows raised towards the ceiling, "Well, somebody's in a bad mood."

"Forget it, let's just get this over with quickly."

"Hiccup, it's my job to find out about these things, so what's annoyed you so much?"

"No, it's your job to find a way to make me so I am no longer a nut job, nothing more and nothing less."

She dropped the subject, looking a bit put down by my rude attitude, but she seemed to recover as time went on. She asked me many questions, including whether I had had anymore nightmares, or if I had seen my Dad recently. When I said that I had gone to Jack's house for the night, she seemed to look as if she was about to squeal in a high pitch voice.

Then her face hardened, "But seriously now Hiccup, you must at talk to your Dad about this, or at least bring him here to me, it sounds as if he is in as much need of help as you are, or were."

"Were?"

"Yes, well, besides whatever put you in such a bad mood this morning, there has been a notable improvement in you, both outwardly and inwardly. Now, as that is really all, I suggest you go to break, and have a bit of relaxation before your next class."

"But, we didn't really talk about anything?"

"Well, now it is much more a matter of you doing things independently, and coming to me when you yourself feel you need aid. The only thing left to deal with is your father, but I can do that if you do not feel up to it."

I stood, and turned away from her. Should I let her talk to Dad, or rather a better question is, could I handle talking to Dad?

I picked up my bag and turned back to her, "I'll let you talk to my Father, but please don't tell him about Jack or I, that is for me to do."

She nodded understandingly, and waved me out of the room, not looking up at me, instead emailing someone on her laptop.

* * *

I passed Miss Potts as I exited the reception, giving her a glance as I left. Her face held a mixture of annoyance, disappointment and anger, it was a strange combination. As I left the door, I wondered what to do, should I go and find Jack, or get another head start on my work again? Work, definitely work. I walked down the path way, and headed towards the library, just as the bell rang.

I re-entered the main school building, and had the library in sight. But then of course I realised, fate absolutely hates me.

I collided with another person who had just left their class room, my face smacking into the back of their head, giving my nose a rather painful shock. I looked up at the perpetrator, ready to give them a good shouting at, but then I saw who it was. Astrid. She turned with a look of utter irritation etched onto her face, her bottom lip trembling, and her eyebrows furrowed. It was a bit intimidating at first, and then I saw that her nose was thoroughly bandaged up, making her look a bit like a zoo animal. When she saw it was me who collided with her, her expression changed.

Her voice was nasally and grated on my ears, no doubt from the damage I had caused.

"Hiccup, what are you doing?" She backed up a bit, her friend beside her giving her an odd look.

I reached up and scratched the back of my neck, becoming fairly surprised when she flinched, as if she thought I was going to hit her. Maybe this could come in handy, having her afraid of me I mean. Very handy indeed.

I lowered my eyebrows, and steeled my eyes, "Watch where the hell you're going next time, idiot."

She backed up further, lowering her head, and giving what sounded like a scared sorry, if it wasn't so pathetic, it would be mildly amusing.

I walked past her, giving out a sigh of irritation to further show her what for.

I was about to enter the library when I was interrupted yet again, this time by someone grabbing my arm. Was I ever going to get to where I wanted? I turned and saw the usual suspect, Jack, standing there, giving me a small smile. I stared straight into his eyes, and retracted my arm from his grip, or at least I tried to. Hey, he is stronger than me.

"You know, most people call out to somebody, they don't randomly grab them."

He just looked at me, and released me from his grip. Standing there uncomfortably, he yet again did his habit of opening and closing his mouth.

I sighed for about the millionth time this week, "Jack, what is it? I actually want to get stuff done this break."

He opened his mouth again, this time words finally coming out, "Well, I was thinking that maybe, you know." He stopped and shrugged, placing his hands in his pockets.

I closed my eyes and pinched the bridge of my nose in frustration, "No, Jack. I don't, so spit it out please."

"Well, would you, maybe like to stay over again tonight?"

I reopened my eyes quickly, this couldn't wait until later?

"Jack, not to sound rude, but why?"

He looked perturbed, "Well I was thinking that until you sort out the problem with your Dad, I could maybe, I dunno, let you stay with me?"

I raised an eyebrow at him, was he trying to say he wanted to care for me like a baby? Because I am not a baby.

"If you stayed, not only would you have a more comfortable place, but I would be there as well!"  
Okay, now this was definitely sounding unattractive to me, I couldn't handle Jack 24/7.

"And, and there would be food! All the food you want, you would actually gain a few needed pounds."

At the mention of all the food I wanted, my ears pricked up, "Done."

I hope I wouldn't come to regret this.

I turned away from Jack and entered the library, getting a glare from the librarian, which I obviously returned.

I found an empty table, and dug out a half finished artist inspired outcome, which I had based on the works of Chiaroscuro. However, when I returned to a normal seating position, I found Jack again, sitting in front of me.

"Hello, again," he chuckled sheepishly.

"Are you really going to just sit there for the whole of break and watch me draw?"

"Yeah, it's not like I have anything else to do or anyone else to talk to."

My thoughts proved him wrong however, "What about your friend?"

He looked up in confusion, "What friend?"

"The tall one, black hair, poor excuse for muscles, uses too much fake tan. Ring any bells? You were giggling and joking with each other a lot the other day."

He looked up in thought, "Oh! You mean Finn, he's not really a friend, just a person from my engineering class that I decided to do in my spare time."

"So, why aren't you there now?"

"I dropped out, it got too hot for me, and you know how I hate being hot."

"He certainly looked like a friend to me," I started to draw, pressing down a bit too forcefully on the pencil.

Jack looked at me suspiciously, "Hiccup, are you jealous."

My pencil snapped. The lead pinged off, and hit the girl on the table next to us on the head. I noticed it was the same girl from the other day, does she live here?

I looked back up to Jack, who now had a firm smirk implanted on his features, "No! I just, wanted to know. Now, shut up so I can get this done, I already have to stay for two hours tonight."

"Two hours?"

"Yes, now please shush."

Jack left me alone for much of the rest of the day, allowing me to get as much work done as I possibly could, which I have to say that I appreciated. It meant less for me to do after school. It wasn't until I was leaving for the library that he spoke to me again.

"Hic, I can stay with you if you want? I have a book to read, so I wouldn't bother you."

I entered the library, holding the door for him, "Fine, I kinda want you to stay anyway."

He laughed and patted my butt as he passed, "I knew you would."

"Not like that idiot, I don't remember the way to your house from here."

"Oh."

* * *

We sat in silence, for any attempt at speaking would be cut down by either the librarian as he emerged from the shadows behind us, or the girl next to us, who held a strange look in her eyes. When he had about ten minutes left, Jack had finally had enough.

"Hiccup," he moaned, "I'm so bored!"

"Join the club."

The girl next to us suddenly shushed us, to which Jack replied instantly, "You know, if you shush me one more time, I'll make sure all you hear is silence."

It was highly inappropriate of me, but I snorted through my nose when I saw the terrified look on her face, she instantly went back to her book.

We left the library the first chance we got, heading straight down the corridor. We were almost out the door when I heard someone call my name. Were doors just bad luck for me today?

Miss Robert's voice reverberated through the hall, "Hiccup, before you go to...wherever you have decided to go, I thought I should let you know something."

I turned and put my hands out to the side, what was it with people and not actually telling me what they wanted from me.

"I called your Dad, he's coming in for an appointment tomorrow, and I want you to be there."

Oh... Crap...

**Right, so Merry Christmas to everyone!**

**Oh and thanks to a reviewer called Chris, a fellow fanboy, who has been the only review who I haven't thanked yet! :D**


	12. Finn

**Right, I hate this chapter, but it sets up the plot for the next one, so I guess it will have to do! :(**

"Jack, shouldn't we be the other way around?"

I was currently sitting on Jack's sofa, and Jack? Well, Jack was lying across my lap, as if he needed to be comforted right now.

"Well, I need to think, and me lying like this will help."

I looked down on his face, seeing that he had closed his eyes in thought. I began to idly play with a strand of his hair, feeding it through my fingers.

"Why do you need to think? It's not like you can do anything to help, it's going to happen whether I like it or not. Anyway, you're not even going to be there!"

He half opened one eye and tilted his head to the side, "You don't look very worried about this."

He had no idea. While I was calm on the outside, having mastered the art of the poker face, inside, I was screaming my heart out. I was totally unprepared for Miss Robert's sudden declaration, this will be the first time I have actually seen my Dad. Well, unless you count the time he was unconscious, but I most certainly don't.

I stood suddenly, causing Jack to fall to the ground with a soft thud. Ignoring his protests and moans, I walked over to the sink and poured myself a glass of cold, clear water. It wasn't like the water at my house, which claimed to be clear, but really held a slight brown tint. No, this water was purely transparent. I lifted the glass to my lips and felt the cool liquid slip down into my mouth, taking small swallows every so often.

When I lowered my gaze, Jack was staring at me, seemingly in awe.

"You drank that so sexually, like it was a photo shoot." He leant on his hand, and beckoned me with the other one.

"I am not a dog Jack, I come when I want to," I walked over to the fridge, hoping to find some food.

"I bet you do."

My body froze, "Jack, if you say one more word like that, I will throw this glass at you, now what do you have to eat, you promised me food here."

After about five minutes of rummaging through the cupboards, discovering strange foodstuffs that I had never heard of, nor really wanted to, I finally found something that piqued my interest. It was a simple can of peaches.

I tried to reach up to grab it, but I was too short. Then I felt hands wrap around my waist, and hoist me up onto the sideboard, allowing me to grab the can.

I looked down, and Jack was still holding me, his hands feeling light, yet strong, upon my body. When I showed him I had the can, he let go and went to a drawer, pulling out the can opener. When I didn't get down, he just stared at me.

"Are you going to live up there?"

"Jack, I can't get down, it's too big a drop for me." Well, in truth it probably wasn't, or at least it wouldn't be if I wasn't so fragile.

He laughed at me slightly, much to my annoyance, and walked back over. He scooped his arm under my legs, and the other behind my back, I knew exactly what he was doing.

"What is it with you and carrying me bridal style?" This seemed to be the only way he knew to carry someone.

"I like how it makes me feel, like I'm protecting you."

I blushed slightly from that, as much as I acted like I didn't want it, it was nice to have someone who cared for me.

I was placed down on the sofa again, and not a minute later, presented with a bowl of peaches.

"What do they taste like?"

"Peaches."

"Oh, very helpful."

I slid a slice of the fruit into my mouth, and my taste buds exploded upon contact. It was tangy, sweet and juicy, but maybe just a bit too sweet.

After finishing the bowl, I set it down on the side, letting Jack take it to the sink.

"I think I'm gonna throw up." I shouldn't have eaten it all, I'm not used to something so sweet.

"Well, maybe you should lie down in bed, it could help with digestion." Jack's face wasn't plagued with worry or concern, but it was obvious that he didn't like that I was in discomfort.

"Fine."

* * *

I crawled under the covers of our... Jack's bed, placing my head down on the soft pillows. My eyes instantly felt heavy, leading me to drift off into a deep slumber in a short time.

I was in the school, or rather floating through it, like a ghost or phantom, one that affects nothing in its environment. I floated through the red doors, and down the corridor when I heard someone sobbing. It was me, sitting outside Miss Robert's room, on the floor as there were no seats. Even from this distance, I looked pathetic, eyes streaming, nose running and my hair a mess.

I floated over to myself, which felt entirely weird and surreal, but as soon as I did so, I knew the cause of the dream me's tears. Through the glass window, I could see my Dad was in the room behind me, and Miss Roberts was nodding along to every single word that he said. I couldn't hear what they were saying, only heated, muffled noises, but apparently the other me could, sobbing louder on particular noises made from the room. I could only assume it was about me... well him, and that my Dad was telling his side of the story.

If she was nodding along to everything, then Miss Roberts was no longer my protector, but had now been convinced that I was in the wrong, that I was a monster. It shocked me, not because she had been convinced, but because this outcome was actually possible. Then my eyes were torn from the body on the floor, seeing that both the adults exited the room, and looked down on the me that was nested on the floor, who was writhing in his own tears. Both of their eyes were empty and unforgiving, telling me that they no longer cared for me, seeing me only as an outcast, a monster. Looking down, I saw that my eyes were painfully wide filled to the brim with overwhelming fear and guilt.

"Ahh, you see this is what could happen Hiccup, what will happen." Pitch's voice resonated around me, as the school, the world, faded into black. "You will never be free from guilt or fear, they are part of you now. Now, be consumed by them."

My body began to feel weightless as I fell, screaming was silent, and my hands could cling to nothing, leaving me to hopelessly fall forever.

And that's when I fell, my eyes becoming enshrouded by a dark blanket, consuming me in shadow.

I awoke violently, hitting me head on something as I threw my body upwards. I winced in pain, rubbing the spot on my now burning forehead, wondering what I had collided with. Apparently it was Jack's head as he was now doubled over backwards, cradling his forehead in an exaggerated agony. This head butting thing was becoming a habit, not that it wasn't an amusing one.

I crawled over him, my body on top of his, and removed his hands away from his face. Examining the damage myself, I could see that there wasn't even a mark, surprising because I felt like I had a slight lump on my head.

He looked up at me, and grinned again, "So that's the thanks I get for checking on you."

I just stared at him, reached back, and threw a pillow directly into his face.

"I'm not in the mood Jack," I looked over at the clock, it was five thirty, half an hour until we had to get up for school.

He sat up, removing the pillow slowly, "I'm guessing that you had another nightmare? You were tossing all night, and you're in a bad mood right now."

"Kinda, it was very vague," I grunted slightly. I was not in a bad mood, I was in a horrible one. Not only had I had a bad sleep, but it was about a possible outcome of today's events, and then to top it off I now have a killer headache.

"Vague? What do you mean?"

"Never mind, just drop it and go back to sleep, I'm getting breakfast."

I leant on the side as I slowly ate my cereal. This was my first nightmare for a while, and the fact I was still having them showed that I wasn't fully recovered. However, this was my first one for a while, and compared to the others it was much tamer, not really being very intimidating. I suppose it was because it was about the future, something I could change, and not the past, something that is fixed. It was vague and wishy-washy, and the fact I was removed from my body made me feel even further away from it all. Even Pitch's voice held little to no effect.

I put in another spoonful of my breakfast as the alarm clock went off in the bedroom, followed by a low thudding sound, Jack must have slammed it. I eyed the doorway, waiting for him to appear at any second, but he didn't, not even after a couple of minutes. Did he get lost between the bed and the door or something?

I left my food on the counter and walked over to the bedroom, and there on was the answer to my question. Jack was hanging head first out of the bed, covers still draped over his lower half. His top was hanging down to reveal his torso, and also muffled his light snoring. I stood there for a moment, watching the way his chest rose and fell in a steady rhythm, and how his eyelids fluttered every so often. I noticed that his leg twitched under the bed sheet, as if he was a dog. It was quite comical.

I walked over, straightening the abused alarm clock as I passed it, and leaned down so that I was near his ear.

"Jack, get up."

No reply, "Now."

Still no reply. Resting my arms on my knee, I began thinking of a way to get him up quickly, while also punishing him for ignoring me on purpose. Then it hit me, the perfect method! I brought a finger up to my mouth, and coated it with a heavy amount of saliva, making sure to get it all over. Retracting it from my mouth, I did the only sensible thing, and stuck it into Jack's ear. Let's just say that he woke up that time.

* * *

We were half way to school, and Jack was still running his ear like a little child.

"I know you were in a bad mood, but did you have to ram it in so hard?"  
I could easily give him a taste of his own medicine and make a crude, tasteless joke, but I decided against it, settling for laughing quietly.

"Well, if you stop rubbing it, maybe it would settle down quicker."

He seemingly took my advice as when we reached the gates he hadn't rubbed for a while. That's when I remembered something, Jack still hadn't got his car back yet.

"Jack?" he turned, "When are you getting your car back?"

His eyes widened in realisation, apparently he had forgotten too, "Crap, I forgot to chase them up about that! I'll have to do it after school today."

I can understand how I would forget, I mean, it's not my car, but how could he forget?

We entered the gates together, turning to go to our first lesson, which was English. As we passed different groups of people, I could hear multiple whispered conversations, all about the same thing, me and Jack.

"Hey, those are the two boys that are dating," I heard a girl smaller than me say, her friend looked at us and grinned strangely. Creep.

I didn't care about the talk going on around us, but Jack seemed to be slightly unnerved by it, blushing ever so slightly. Thanks to my famous comforting powers, I had no idea how to make him feel less embarrassed, so I just slid my hand into his, earning me a surprised, but happy, look from him. I smiled back, liking the warm feeling inside me.

* * *

We entered the classroom and sat at our seats, next to each other in the corner away from everyone else. I looked up at the clock, we had another five minutes before the other students would come in, and then there would be an hour before my appointment. Seeing that I was clock  
watching, Jack gave my hand a firm squeeze, not saying anything. I just responded by smiling gratefully at him, that was all I could do right now.

We worked in silence, with me continuously looking at the time, wanting this lesson to last as long as possible. Even though the events of what will happen aren't fixed and can change, I suppose that is what is scaring me, the fact that anyone can change them, for better or worse.

When the bell finally rang, Jack and I got up at the same time, not saying anything. Then we looked at each other, and said our first words to each other for the past hour.

"Good luck in there."

"Huh, yeah, because this can only go well."

"Well, I hope it does anyway."

I walked out of the classroom as Jack packed up his things from the lesson. I gave one final look back and caught his eye, resulting in the two of us sharing a small, fragile smile. Turning away, I continued through the endless sea of students.

As I walked through the school grounds, my mind began thinking up so many questions. Is Dad in a worse state than what he was last time I saw him, and had that made him angrier? Would he even turn up to this meeting, or is he totally against the idea? Well, I guess I'll just have to wait and find out the answer to those questions, hopefully it goes my way for once in my life.

* * *

As I exited my thoughts, I found myself in front of the main office. As I entered I completely disregarded Miss Potts and went straight through the red doors. Walking down the corridor, I found Miss Roberts standing outside her room, closing her door.

She turned to me, but she didn't smile like usual, "Hiccup, your Dad is already in the room, I would like for you to wait out here," She motioned to a bench opposite the door.

"But I thought you wanted me here, that this was the whole point of this meeting?"  
"Well, I do want you here, but I mean as in here as in nearby, not in the room."

I gave her a quizzical look as I sat down on the bench. If she only needed me nearby, she could put out a message on the speaker system, not drag me out of lesson to sit here worrying for an hour. She responded to my look with a hardened gaze, when she wants to be, she can be quite stern and cold looking. My eyes dropped from hers as she re-entered her room, but they soon shot back up, spotting the back of my father's head before the door closed, blocking it from view.

I sat there for the whole hour, but it felt like an eternity; An eternity of worry and suspense. I could different pitched muffles through the door, occasionally some noises would be louder than others, both the deep and high pitched voices would raise on occasion. Miss Roberts never shouts at me, so Dad must be acting really stubbornly. Oh god, that's not a good sign.

I clutched my head and brought my knees to my chest as the door opened, preparing for a raging Dad of mine to emerge, but it never happened. I curiously looked back up and saw Miss Roberts standing there, with a large smile on her face.

"Hiccup, I believe a small amount of progress has been made!"

As soon as the words left her mouth, I heard a loud sob come from her room, causing me to try and peak around her figure.

"That doesn't sound like progress. Do I have to see him now?"

She turned her gaze back to the door, staring at it for a while, still grinning.

"No, it turns out I had you sitting here needlessly, sorry about that," she looked back to me, "You go on ahead, I'll escort your Dad out of the school once you have left."

I nodded, slightly aggravated that I had been worrying here for no reason, and left as she returned to her room, the sobs growing louder as she opened the door.

* * *

When I entered the common room, my gaze set upon Jack and that boy, Finn, sitting there in the corner, on the computers, laughing away at something on Jack's screen. Hmph, so much for him being worried about me.

I walked up behind them, not saying anything, and looked at what they were giggling at so vigorously. It was not that funny. It was a picture of a maternity door with three signs on it, each saying the word 'push' in larger letters than the last. I found it to be mildly amusing, although I would never admit it, but the boys in front of me found it utterly hilarious.

I stood there for a couple of seconds longer, watching them scroll past some other pictures which made them giggle just as loud.

"Well, you two are having fun."

They turned around suddenly, looking as if they had just messed their pants.

"I'm fine by the way."

Jack looked up at me, but my gaze was more directed towards Finn, who was looking me up and down, staring at me a bit too intently for my liking.

Jack finally stood up, "So? How did it go, was it okay?"

I sighed, and looked at him, then dragged him a bit away from his friend.

"Wait, what are you doing?"

"Well, I'm sorry, I would like to discuss something personal with my boyfriend without prying ears listening on a matter they know nothing about." He shut up.

"Anyway, it was fine. Well, o say fine, but really I just sat there for the hour, I didn't even go in the room, and Miss Roberts somehow made my Dad cry."

He looked shocked, I figured it was about my Dad crying.

"Well, as long as nothing went wrong in there, I suppose that's good."

"Yeah, I guess you're right, I'm just worried about the fact that I don't know what happened in there."  
He reached forward and rubbed my hand with his, "I'm sure you'll find out soon."

"Hmm, well, I have to really."

We walked back over to where Finn was sitting, and he smiled up at me as we did so. I forced a smile in return, although I think I looked constipated and fake, as Jack elbowed my in the side, whispering for me to be nice.

He extended his hand towards me, smiling brighter, "I don't think we've met, I'm Finn, Jack's friend."

I took his hand, giving it a half hearted shake, "I'm Hiccup, Jack's boyfriend," I emphasised the last part for good measure, earning my a look off both of the two.

After about a 10 second period of awkward silence, Jack cleared his throat, and pulled out a seat for me, pushing me down into it with a small amount of force.

"Hic, come and look at this site Finn found, it's hilarious!"

They both parted opposite ways, making room for me in between the two of them, and there we sat until the end of break. Both of them would laugh at random images while I just sat there, either thoroughly unamused or just not getting the joke, needing it to be explained to me. The way the two of them act, anyone would think they should be in a relationship, not me and Jack.

When break was almost finished, Jack went to the toilet, leaving me alone with Finn, which was more than unpleasant. We sat there in silence, not making eye contact, as I fumbled around in my bag, trying to find something to distract myself.

"You know, you don't have to be so wary of me, I'm not going to steal him."

I looked up at the boy next to me, his earlier smile now gone, "What are you talking about?"  
"Don't play dumb, it's obvious your worried I'm gonna try and take Jack away from you, but it's unnecessary, he's just not my type, too much like myself."

I glared down at him, he was very different when Jack wasn't here, "I think you should just stop talking now."

"Ooh, cold shoulder, bet that makes you lots of friends."  
"I don't need friends, I can manage on my own."

He stood, and like every other man in this god forsaken school, loomed over me, "Even without Jack?"

I remained quiet.

Even though he had not said that much, I still wanted to slap that mouth of his face, but I didn't, he was obviously much stronger than me. Well, not that it would do him much good in everyday life, I must admit, his muscles weren't as unimpressive as I originally thought.

"Hmph, I didn't think so."

I stood up suddenly, and turned away from him, seeing Jack had come back from the toilet.

"Ready to go?"

We said goodbye to Finn, although I did it begrudgingly, and walked through a relatively quiet hallway, which had a long expanse of windows running down it. The light flooded in, the glare from the windows hurting my eyes and making me squint, causing me to bump into Jack a few times, not that he minded. He never minds anything I do wrong, I can't tell if that's good or bad.

As we walked through the corridor, we saw the librarian again, who sneered at the both of us, most likely remembering how loud we were last time.

"Wow, look who left his pit of despair and boredom," Jack whispered to me.

I leaned closer to him, talking quietly, "Must be looking for some fresh souls to devour."

He laughed loudly, attracting the attention of the people surrounding us, but their looks didn't last long, as we turned into our classroom.

* * *

Nothing overly exciting happened in the lessons for the rest of the day, in art I accidently walked into the table and spilled paint over a girl's head, earning me a smack in the face, followed by Jack shouting at her and making her cry. Then, later, in history Jack sneezed, causing his head to slip of his hand and smack on to the table with a considerable amount of force, attracting a lot of attention, but that was about it. The only other thing that happened was that I finally caught up on all the work I had missed during my... breakdown, so I no longer had to stay behind after school, much to the headmaster's apparent displeasure. The sadist.

We were currently leaving the school, deciding where we should go for lunch, I wanted to go back to Jack's, but he was adamant on going to a little café down the road from the school.

Eventually I gave in, and we walked off in its direction.

"So, what's so special about this place then? You really wanted to go here."

"It's where my Dad took my Mum on their first date, and as this is ours, I thought it would be a good place to have it too!"

My mind began to wonder, was this really our first date? Hmm, we have already known each other of a while now, and we have also had... sex, but he's right, we hadn't actually gone on a date.

We sat down in a little booth in the back of the building, which was actually quite quaint looking. The white walls were adorned with various black floral patterns, and there were paintings scattered neatly around the place. The smell of different coffees filled the air, but not enough to overpower you senses.

"I must admit Jack, this is a nice place."  
He beamed up at me, "Told you, now, what do you want to eat? My treat!"

I looked at the menu, and I didn't recognise a thing. Sure, there were pictures of the food next to the name of the dish, but they were all named after French words, and I don't know a single French word.

"Umm," then I saw something that vaguely resembled an English word, "The Cockscomb?"

He raised his eyebrows at me, "Really? Okay."

Before I could inquire as to why he was surprised, he had already gotten up and gone to the counter, telling the waitress our orders. She too looked surprised at my order, making me have a feeling of dread in my stomach, what the hell did I ask for?

She looked over to me, a quizzical look still on her face, then disappeared into the kitchen, shouting our orders to the cooks.

We both sat there for about half an hour, talking about small things, like how Jack's mum and Dad found this place, or what Jack had actually ordered for himself, when the waitress came back, holding three plates. On one was a thick, creamy chocolate cake that looked as if it was richer than any other, on the second, was Jack's dish, a plate of smouldering chicken. And then my eyes fell to the plate in front of me. Whatever was in front of me.

There, sitting on my plate, was a large collection of floppy pink blobs of meat, resembling the fleshy bit on the top of a roosters head. It was steaming away, and gave of the stench of meat. All in all, it looked disgusting, but what did it taste like? I almost placed it into my mouth, and saw that both the waitress and Jack were staring at me, that was not a good sign.

When I finally did take a bite, my mouth rejected the fleshy lump. It was stringy, fatty and salty, if there was one word for this thing, it would most certainly be vile. I spat it out with haste, and pushed the plate away from me.

"Haha, I knew you would hate it! I didn't think you knew what it really was!"

Jack found this absolutely hilarious, well, let's see how funny he thinks it is when I eat his cake by myself.

Apparently not very...


	13. Shower Time

**Ok, we are officially M rated now! You asked for fluff and sexy times, so I shall deliver! :D**

"Hiccup, did you really have to eat all our cake by yourself? I bought it to share!" Jack whined as we walked back to his.

"Well, let's just call it payback for you not telling me about that horrible dish you bought me."  
"Well, it's partly your fault to! Why would you even order something with cock in the name?"  
"Says the one who served Spatchcock Chicken a couple of nights ago?"

"Oh, yeah.."

As we walked hand in hand, the sun began to set, making it look as if we were having a romantic walk, like they do in the movies, but it was still nice nonetheless. The houses and trees were all tinted orange, and the slight breeze made the temperature comfortable, even if my hair kept going in my eyes. It was not often that there were days as nice as this here, so I should savour it.

We eventually got home, climbing up the multitude of steps to reach Jack's flat.  
"Well, I still think we should have something to eat together."

Hmm, he really wants to share some food, maybe I could try cooking. No, no! That would be a terrible idea, although it could be a fun one.

"Well, if you truly want to share something, sit in the living room, and I'll cook something up."

So he there he sat, although he did not sit still, constantly changing positions, going from upside down, to draped over the chair's arm, and then normally while swinging his feet back and forth. Meanwhile, I had no idea what I was doing in the kitchen, all the recipes in the book looked alien to me.

My original idea was to play a joke on him, but that was thrown out the window. No, now I wanted to do something nice for him, he did try and make our date go smoothly after all, well, as much as he could. I wanted to cook something simple, but nice, a meal to show my appreciation, but I just couldn't find it, they all looked the same.

What does he even like? Actually, a better question is what does he have for me to cook with? I ran, well not really, to the cupboards and fridge-freeze, book in hand, and poured through his foodstuffs. Duck, broccoli, onions, chicken, carrots, red wine, butter, korma sauce, rice... Wait a minute, Wine?

"Jack, how did you get wine? You're underage."

He peaked up over the counter, still on the sofa, "I have my ways."

"Very helpful"

After searching through every inch of the kitchen, I finally found a supposedly easy dish to prepare, roasted duck breast with plum sauce. Hopefully this wouldn't be a disaster. I dragged the duck over to the counter, slicing off a few cuts from the breast, which was easier than I thought, maybe I'm getting stronger. I looked in the book quietly reading the instructions out, so Jack couldn't hear me.

"For the sauce, fry the shallot in the oil for 5 minutes or until softened but not coloured. Add the plums and sugar, stirring for a few minutes until the sugar has dissolved. Add the red wine and stock, then simmer for about 15 minutes, stirring occasionally, until softened and slightly thickened."

Okay, that shouldn't be too hard, but where does Jack keep the sugar? I never saw any in the cupboards, I'll have to ask.

"Jack, were do you keep the sugar?"

"Under the sink."

"Um, I'm just going to say it, why under the sink?"

"Because then I know where it is, of course."

Surely you should know where it was if it was in the cupboard, but oh well. I looked under the sink, and sure enough there it was, along with some garlic, oranges, apples and a banana. Where does he keep his bleach and things like that? Dragging out the sugar I did as the book instructed, waiting the appropriate amount of time as I prepared the rest.

"Meanwhile, heat the oven to 180C/ 160C fan/gas 4. Score the skin of the duck breasts with a sharp knife and season well with salt and pepper. Heat a non-stick frying pan and place the duck breasts in, skin-side down. Fry for 6-7 minutes, then turn and add the thyme, star anise and butter. Allow this to melt, basting the duck with the juices, then transfer everything to a small roasting tin and finish in the oven for 5-6 minutes for pink or 10-12 minutes for well done."

What the hell is a gas four fan? I might just die now, this is not going to be as easy as the book said, I can see it now! The duck will be black, the sauce will be stodgy and Jack will hate it, and probably throw up everywhere.

Apparently my distress was very visible, as Jack called over, "Drama queen, don't worry, you can do it, I know you can."

"Well, as long as one of us is sure of that."

When the duck was finished I read the final step, my finger hovering over each word as I did so.

"When the duck is ready, baste again with the juices, then rest for 5 minutes while you finish everything else. To serve, thinly slice each duck breast on a chopping board. Arrange on each plate along with a spoon of the Creamed potatoes, some of the plum sauce and the Buttered spinach."

I tried to pour the sauce carefully, but I ended up shaking and getting it everywhere, but that didn't matter right now. What did matter was that I had just made my first meal, without so much as a single burn, the duck wasn't even black! Maybe I was better at this than I thought. But something's missing, I can't just have duck by itself, it needs something to go with it, but what? Jack doesn't have potatoes or spinach, so what can I prepare in a matter of seconds so that the duck doesn't go cold? Then it hit me, apples. If there is one fruit I know best it's an apple.

I clawed an apple out from under the sink, which still confused me as to why they were down there, and quickly cut it up into sections. Great, now what? I could bake them, but that would take too long, what else is there. My eyes scoured the room, and there it was, the microwave.

I opened the door and threw the slices in, after putting them on a plate obviously, and set it to the highest temperature for a couple of seconds, hoping it would do the trick, which it did. They came out dried and wrinkly, but upon tasting one, they were perfectly edible, well for me anyway.

I spread a couple out on both plates, and looked up at Jack, who was now taking a nap. Has it really been that long? There was the twenty minutes for the sauce, twenty four minutes for the duck, and then five minutes to baste again. That's fifty minutes in total, oh, wow. He's been sitting there for fifty minutes doing nothing, maybe I should have given him something to do, although if he was really that bored, he could have found something by himself.

Instead of feeling guilty, I can use this to my advantage, and really prepare the table nicely. After all, if the environment is out of place with the food it will ruin the feeling. So, with that in mind, I strode over to the table area, pawing through the cabinet nearby, trying to find anything that could be of use. There was so much useless rubbish like printer paper, which almost fell on me, folders, and a collection of snow globes, again, not going to ask.

But I eventually found something, a set of candles and a lighter. This would certainly help out. Checking Jack was still asleep, I laid out the cutlery and placed three candles in a triangle formation, letting them illuminate the room once I dimmed the lights. It was ready.

I shook Jack lightly, trying to wake him up, but to no avail. He couldn't be asleep already, so I figured he was ignoring me again, probably thinking I want him to help.

I leaned down close to his ear and whispered softly, "Jack, do you want a repeat of this morning's ear situation?"

No response, he must really be asleep then.

How do you wake up a tired teenage boy? I crawled on top of him, and started to lightly shake his shoulders, hoping that would do it.

His eyes fluttered open slightly, meeting with mine, "Well, this is a nice position to wake up in, just what are you doing?"  
That's when I became aware of how this looked, I was sitting on top of him, gripping his clothes, with the lights dimmed and the room only lit by candles, in other words, it looks like I'm looking for sex.

My face grew red as I leaped off of him, "I-I made some food, you said you wanted to eat together."

He looked over towards the table, and a gentle smile grew on his face as he stood up, bringing me into a tight embrace, then practically dragging me over to the table.

"Wow, I didn't even know I had duck!" I looked at him in surprise, hopefully that didn't mean it was a really old duck.

"Yeah, well, I-I thought I would do something to say thanks for everything you've done, "I rubbed my arm awkwardly, "It means a lot to me."

His lips lightly graced my forehead, before slowly retreating, "Hiccup," he said huskily.

* * *

We ate at our own pace, talking about subjects that were a bit more intimate, and personal, rather than our usual chats about completely unrelated things. I found out Jack had a little sister, who adored him, and that his mother was slightly overprotective, with his father being like anyone else's father, I assumed that meant someone you could turn to whenever you wanted to, a true father figure in every sense of the word. Our hands ended up intertwined as we finished, and we discussed a bit more about our relationship.

"So, when are we going to tell our parents?" I asked, not looking forward to it at all.

Jack shrank in his seat slightly, looking sheepish before mumbling something.

"Jack? I can't hear you."

"I said I already told my parents after the first week."

I blinked, why did he think I would be mad about that? It just meant I didn't have to do it myself, which I was actually grateful for.

"So, how did they take it?"  
He seemed surprised I didn't explode at him, "They took it well, they want to meet you soon, especially my mum, she says you sound interesting."  
I frowned slightly at the last word, that could be taken as either a good or bad thing, but for now, I hope it's a good thing.

We both stood at the same time, taking our plates to the sink and just leaving them there.

I felt gross, not from the atmosphere, but from having cooked and worried about everything, I needed to wash, and I needed to now.

"I'm going to take a shower, I'll be out in a minute."

Jack didn't reply for a few seconds, but then a mischievous grin grew on his face, "Yeah, see you soon."

I had a bad feeling about this.

* * *

I stood there in the shower, steam surrounding me as the hot water poured down. It was nice, much nicer than the shower at my house, which was only ever lukewarm at best. I wasn't even washing myself, but instead just standing there, looking at the tiles as I lost myself in thought. Did Jack like the dinner? He seemed to, especially when he first woke up. But what really worried me was that grin on his face, he was definitely planning something, that much was obvious.

I started to wash my hair when I heard the door open and close. I tried to look around, but the shampoo leaked into my eyes, forcing me to wash it out. But when I turned back around, there was the culprit. A naked, wet Jack, grinning madly from ear to ear.

My eyes grew wide, "Jack, what the he-"

But I never finished the sentence, for Jack pushed his lips against mine, pushing me into the cold tiles of the wall. I gasped from the sudden cold, pushing my body closer to Jack's to try and escape it, much to his pleasure. The second my mouth opened, he slipped his tongue inside, brushing it against the tip of mine.

I was still slightly dazed, but I will admit, this felt good, more than good, it felt great. I began to move mine against his, putting my hands in his wet hair, as his moved to my hips, dragging my right leg upwards in a quick, fluid motion. That's when I realised what he wanted to do, what he was going to do.

Breaking off the kiss, I breathed heavily through my mouth, my face showing my anxiety.

"It's okay Hic, trust me," his voice was low and husky, making me feel safe in his arms.

Continuing the kiss, I leant back against the wall, breathing sharply through my nose as I did, while Jack lifted my other leg up, making me sit in his lap, his hands cupped my buttocks as he looked deep into my eyes.

"Ready?" He asked me, he didn't waver for a second, instead sounding steady and calm, which somewhat helped calm my nerves, but not by much. I just kept picturing him slipping from the water.

"Y-yeah," I replied, sounding slightly weak and pathetic.

H e continued to look at me for a bit longer, judging if I was really ready, and then nodded, water dripping off his nose as he did.

Slowly, he spread my cheeks apart, as well as massaging the area, resulting in me giving out small, pained squeaks. Even though we had done this before, the water made it feel new and strange. He looked back up at me, planting another kiss on me, all the while pushing in one finger, then another. The noises I was giving out caused the kiss to become sloppy and messy, with saliva dripping down both our chins.

Once three finger were already inside, he moved them about, making sure the area was thoroughly prepared. I continued to let out strangled noises, which seemed to just serve to make Jack more excited. Withdrawing the fingers, he breathed heavily through his nose, then lowered me down at the same time as raising his hips, putting his hardened member inside of me, causing yet more moaning.

I looked at Jack and looped my arms around his neck for better support as he slowly started to move back and forth. The motion was rigid and somewhat uncomfortable as we had never tried this position before, meaning neither of us knew what to do.

"J-Jack, not s-so hard," I panted, hurting a little instead of feeling sweet pleasure.

He leaned close to my ear, and whispered, "Sorry," before kissing my neck, giving it multiple bites and sucks in rapid succession.

The pace started to even out as Jack found his rhythm, meaning the pain started to subside, and the pleasure slowly crept in, each thrust causing it to build up inside me. Jack's breath grew heavier as the water from the shower beat down on him, washing away any sweat that would surely be there otherwise. He moved a bit to violently, and lifted me off the wall, before slamming me back into it.

A sudden gasp escaped my lips, causing Jack to look at me worriedly.

"K-keep going," I begged, my voice hoarse and strained from the feeling surging through my body.

"Hm," He carried on thrusting, each one feeling better than the last, he was really finding his rhythm.

But even throughout all this, something was bothering me.

Jack was giving me all the pleasure, and not receiving any in turn, just like last time. I decided to rectify that. Using Jack's neck as a support, I pulled myself up, latching my lips onto his neck, hoping to give him a sense of pleasure, a mark to show people he was mine. The sudden motion resulted in Jack having to press his back against the icy wall, but it didn't seem to bother him.

I moved my tongue in a circular motion on his neck, then lightly bit down on the skin, then finally starting to gently suck the area.

Jack's neck twisted and turned as he moaned in pleasure, his eyes clamped shut, "Ahh, f-fuck Hic."

He gave a few more sharp thrust, making me give a deep moan that vibrated against his neck.

"Hic, I'm, I'm gonna c-cum!"

No sooner had the words left his mouth did he fill me with the warm substance, which then proceeded to leak down on to his legs.

I felt warm and tired as we slid down on to the soaking wet floor, both of us panting heavily.

Jack slid out of me, and looked me over, "You're not finished. Lay back."

"No, I-I'm fi-" but before I could say I was too tired, he pushed me back and descended upon me, taking me into his mouth.

He was warm and wet as he moved up and down, sucking and slurping all along my member. When he reached the top, he began to swirl his tongue around the tip, causing me write under him.

"Ungh, Jack, don't stop!"

"Hmph, didn't plane to."

He descended upon me once more, slurping and sucking vigorously, making my face feel flushed and beet red, we didn't do this last time. I slipped my hand into his hair, giving out moans and sighs at regular intervals, each one making Jack moan in turn, sending a vibration up my body, making me twitch madly.

My breath quickened as I felt my body react, "Jack, I'm g-gonna-"

I didn't finish the sentence, instead I tried to pull back, but Jack continued doing his thing, eventually earning a mouthful of hot, salty liquid as a reward.

I gave out a final strangulated moan as he pulled back licking his lips and fingers.

He picked me up off the floor, cradling me against his chest, as we walked into the bedroom, where he laid me down on the bed, then getting a towel from the cupboard and throwing on the bed alongside me.

He put the towel over my head and began drying my hair, giving me a kiss for good measure.

"I love you, Hiccup."

My chest tightened as my face yet again went red, "I love you too, Jack."

**Phew, writing this in the living room is the most tense thing I will ever do! XD**


	14. Missing

When I opened my eye the next day, I was met with a sweet smell floating through the air, oh, as well as a damp towel still on my face. Thanks Jack, thanks for that a lot. Pulling it off my face, I went to search for a dry one from the drawer, and used it to dry off any remaining water, luckily not collapsing this time, although I was still slightly stiffer than usual. I almost fell back onto the bed, but I managed to steady myself by flailing my arms wildly. Damn Jack, I told him not so fast or hard.

I stood there and stared at the bed for a while, then realising two things: one being that I was naked, and the second was that Jack wasn't here, meaning the smell was probably him cooking. I looked around, but I couldn't find my clothes no matter how hard I looked, they must still be in the bathroom and there is no way I am running around this place with no clothes on; who knows what Jack would do.

I stumbled ungracefully over to Jack's wardrobe, weakly pulling the heavy, wooden door open. What I saw slightly surprised me, although I already had an inkling about it. Jack had multiple versions of his hoodie and jeans. Sure he had other clothes, but it was dominated by his usual attire, making it resemble a cartoon character's wardrobe. Oh well, he won't mind if I borrow some clothes and underpants.

After pulling the clothes, which were somewhat too big for me, I followed the scent that my nose had detected earlier, leading me to the kitchen to discover Jack cooking, naked, again.

"Jack, what are you doing?"  
"Cooking pancakes! How many do you want?" His face was innocent, not getting what I meant.

"I didn't mean that," I pointed downwards, "I meant that. Cover it before you burn it."

"Hmph, you sure are picky about when you want to see it."

I sat down on the sofa, "Oh, and I'll have one please."

"Just one? Scared I'll poison you?"  
I thought for a moment, pretending to seriously consider that as a possibility, "No. I'm just not hungry."

The truth? Well, apparently I'm not as good a cook as I thought I was, my stomach was aching like crazy. I looked over towards the kitchen, either his duck was fine, or he's hiding it so he doesn't hurt my feelings. Either way, I'm never going to cook again.

When he brought over the pancake, I had to turn my head away, "Jack, you still haven't got any clothes on, you're at the wrong height right now."

He looked down, apparently forgetting our earlier discussion, "Well, think of it like this, you get dinner and a show!"  
I'm starting to think he might be a complete exhibitionist, or partially insane. I settled for an amalgamation of both.

He sat down next to me, still naked, and began to eat one of his three pancakes, chewing loudly, with the maple syrup collecting in one corner of his mouth. I took a good look at them, he had tried to shape them like hearts, emphasis on the tried to.

I smiled and took my first bite, but then he talked between mouthfuls, "Do you have an appointment with Sandra today?"

I looked up, wondering who he meant, "Oh, Miss Roberts? Well, I'm not sure as she hasn't told me either way. Last time I just sat there and she wanted to continue with Dad, so probably not."

He leaned closer to me, "Good, that means more Hiccup time for me!"

I blushed and leaned my head on his shoulder, taking another bite of my breakfast as he wiped his mouth with his thumb.

"Hmm, now will you go and put some freaking clothes on?"

* * *

We entered the main reception, only because I wanted to check whether or not I had to be there for today's appointment. Jack was being fickle about it though, not wanting to go, but also not wanting to go to the common room by himself. Miss Potts looked up, and her expression almost turned meek under my stare, shown by her widening eyes and knitted eyebrows, although her weak, pitiful gaze did not falter in the slightest.

"Good morning Miss, has Miss Roberts told you whether I have to be present for an appointment today or not?" I tried to sound as polite as I could, but my words ended up coming out as snaps.

"No, or at least I have not been informed about it, you should go and check with her personally," She unlocked the red door with the button that she used to keep me here in the past, the time Jack was late.

She then turned her eyes to Jack, a small smile creeping up, "Oh and Jack, I have a message for you. Your car is ready now, they couldn't reach your phone so they called here, wondering if you were a student. It's rather lucky that you are."

I grunted quietly, thinking that the more likely reason was that he put the school as a secondary contact after his personal number.

I turned and dragged Jack down the corridor, with him shouting his thanks to the receptionist.

As soon as he had done that he began to walk at my speed, instantly questioning me.

"Dude, what was with the cold attitude, you were more formal than anyone I've ever heard."

That was obviously an exaggeration, I wasn't that formal.

We turned the corner as I answered him, "Nothing, we just had a bit of a disagreement, that's all."

I stopped and knocked my knuckles on the door, opening it upon invitation, revealing the woman inside. She was sitting the, feet up on the desk, head laid back on the chair and sighing heavily. Thank god she had trousers on.

My white haired accomplice walked over curiously, waving a hand in front of her face, "Something wrong, Sandra?"

Her feet flew off the desk, and she slammed her head down in their place, making both me and Jack flinch slightly at the noise, I wondered if she broke her glasses, but quickly dismissed the thought after she didn't scream in pain from the glass.

Her head rose slightly, now bearing a red bump on her forehead. She sighed heavily yet again and just looked at the both of us.

I took a tentative step forward, "Miss?"

"I'm tired, absolutely pissing tired." Pissing? Never heard it used like that before.

She leaned back in her chair, this time in a normal manner, "I stayed up all night on the phone with your Dad, who was still crying by the way. I'm surprised he had enough energy to stay awake when we finished."

Jack looked between her and me rapidly, "Wait, so he was really crying? I thought you were lying!"

Neither of us said anything, both having deadpanned expressions, causing him to shy away a little.

She turned back to me again, the eyes under her eyes now clearly visible, "So, what brings you here?"

"Well, I was wondering if you wanted to see me today?"

She stared at me for a while, as if I had asked the world's most stupid question, and that she was ready to explode at me for it. But that never happened. Instead she suddenly brought out her computer and started scrolling through some notes.

"Well, I don't think so, but let me check to be sure," She clicked an assortment of icons, one apparently being the wrong one, evidenced by her swearing, "Crap."

On her screen was a student profile, and not just any student, it was none other than Finn. I quickly looked over my shoulder, seeing that Jack was to interested in some certificates on the wall to see the screen. My eyes flicked back and I saw something that further caught my interest on his profile. In the midst of Miss Robert's random clicking, trying to get the programme to respond again, I saw the words 'handle with care, dangerous', written in red. Interesting indeed.

Just as my interest grew to its highest level, the window disappeared, followed by a satisfied noise from the woman behind the desk. She eventually brought up my notes, and began reading her most recent ones, rubbing her chin as she did so.

"Well, in answer to your question Hiccup, no, today I will simply be going over everything, so I won't be seeing either you or your father," She paused and turned to me, eyes full of concern, "Unless there is a pressing problem you want to discuss?"

At the mention of that, Jack came over, "Problem, what problem? What aren't you telling me Hiccup?" He shook my shoulders lightly, making a whiny face to match his whiny tone.

Pushing his hands to opposite sides, I sighed, "There isn't one, she was just checking."  
"Ahem. 'She' has a name."

I'm sad to say that made me chuckle a little.

* * *

We were currently sitting in the main common room for break, though this time were around a table, 'we' meaning Jack, Finn some girl he brought over and I. Unlike Finn, the girl was likeable, polite yet somewhat shy, giving me the feeling she was a bit intimidated by someone around this table, yet no one, not even Finn, acted aggressively towards her, he actually acted with chivalry, a dying concept.

I was engaging in small talk, learning her name was Michelle, talking with her about some artists that we were interested in. But all the time this was going on, I was just staring at Finn, trying to think what he could've done to earn the title of being 'dangerous'. I knew he was an arsehole, but that seemed like all at the moment.

Apparently my staring was not subtle, as Michelle's timid voice kept calling my name, once tapping my arm, and then flinching when I shook out of my thought's. It was soon obvious that she was not the only one to notice me.

"Haha, he's staring at me Mic. You better watch out Jack, I think he wants me more than you."

Luckily for me, Jack was now good at reading my facial expressions, easily interpreting my disgust and annoyance.

"I really don't think so, Finn."  
But he was adamant on his belief. Putting his hands behind his head he continued, "If you're sure about that!"

Arrogant arsehole.

I turned to the girl next to me, now giving her my full attention, "So, how do you know Finn?"

What I really wanted to ask was 'why is a nice girl like you hanging around with this gorilla,' but I refrained from doing so.

She twisted in her seat, debating whether if she should tell me, this shyness was starting to get annoying to me.

Eventually, she relented, "We're childhood friends, he tells me everything, and I tell him everything too."  
Aha, I wonder if she knows about the reason for hi having a profile. I debated whether or not I should somehow weed it out of her, but I decided that I didn't know her nearly as well as I should to ask that type of question. However, it'll only be a matter of time before I find it out, and make Jack see him as the arrogant prick he really is.

When break ended, we split up our separate ways, Finn going to engineering, not that I cared, Michelle going to her politics class, and Jack and I going to geography together. However, no matter how much Jack tried to get me interested in the formation of a snow cloud, I just couldn't care. When I chose geography, I wanted to learn more about volcanoes, earthquakes and other natural disaster like tsunamis, not how snow I formed, we get enough of it here as it is.

As soon as the bell went, I was out of that classroom quicker than a lightning bolt, practically running to the common room, jumping in a seat in front of a computer when I got there. I typed in my login and password as someone sat down next to me, but to my surprise it wasn't Jack, it was Michelle, who I don't think had even noticed that it was me she had sat next to.

"Hey, Michelle," I said, not looking away from my screen.

She almost jumped out of her skin in shock, "Oh, Hiccup, when did you get there?"

"I was here before you were, you sat next to me."  
She scratched the back of her neck nervously, "Oh, silly me."

Out of the corner of my eye, I could see that Jack had just entered the common room, instantly noticing that there was no room to sit next to me, putting him in a sulk. He sat down heavily on the row behind me, kicking the back of my chair from time to time, forcing me to slam the leg down on his foot once or twice.

Michelle and I chatted for a while, with me eventually resorting to calling her 'Mic' as her full name took too long. Currently she was talking more about her and Finn, resulting in me tuning out a bit, but then something brought me back from the brink of boredom.

"We haven't been as close as we were in the past, he's been having some troubles recently."

I looked at her for a second, wondering if this would be a good time to poke around at what she knows. It wouldn't seem nosy, after all, she brought it up; no, it would just seem like friendly concern.

"What kind of problems?"

She was hesitant for a moment, looking around to see if anyone was listening. I followed her gaze, only seeing a very annoyed Jack listening to his earphones, apparently angry that he didn't get the time with me he mentioned this morning.

She turned back to me and whispered quieter than a mouse, "Well he-"

But just as she was about to reveal the only thing I really cared for since we started talking, Finn appeared behind us, voice booming around us. This guy was a true prima donna, always having to have the spotlight anywhere that he could, and I bet because of his size and attitude he always got it too.

"Hey Mic, are you ready? Breaks about to end in two minutes." He looked down on me and gave a mocking grin, as if he knew he had just spoilt my plan.

Mic became somewhat flustered, quickly logging off and collecting her things together.

She hurriedly rose and followed after the exiting boy, "See you later Hiccup."

Well, that was a disaster.

* * *

Two more weeks went by, and I was no closer to finding out anything about Finn, in fact, I had barely seen him or Mic during that time. Sure they would show up on the odd occasion, but very rarely. Oh well, means less time seeing that idiot.

Miss Roberts continued her appointments with my Dad, not having me in any of them. I was getting slightly agitated, when would I find out what was going on during them? Although, I suppose I don't really need to be present at them, as since I have been sleeping at Jack's, my nightmares have decreased significantly. They're still present, but during the past two weeks I have only had three, unlike when I had them every night.

Currently, me and Jack, who finally got his car back, were sitting in the park, wrapped up in our warmest clothing, sitting on the bench were we met on the first day.

"It feels like it's been forever since it snowed this heavily."

I looked around, watching as a snowflake landed on his nose, causing him to flinch, "Well, as long as the wind stays down, I'll be fine."

Then, for no apparent reason, Jack got up from his seat and walked out into the field.

"Where are you going?"

"Well, my dear Hiccup, I am going to build a snowman, and it will be the best snowman you have ever seen!"

I raised an eyebrow at him, causing him to frown playfully, "What? Do you think you can build a better one then me? Because I don't believe that for a second."

I stared at him blankly. While I didn't particularly want to build one, it was obvious he wanted me to build one as well.

"Fine, I'll build a damn snowman."

Kneeling down, I collected a ball of snow, which I then started to roll along the ground, hoping that I could get it to a reasonable size, or that it wouldn't crumble to dust.

However, I eventually reached a dilemma; I couldn't move the snowball anymore. No matter how hard I pushed, it was just to heavy, and the others that it built were also to heavy to lift on top of it. So, in short, while I didn't have a snowman, at least I had a lot of snow lumps.

I looked over to Jack, seeing that he had now practically finished, just placing the head on top of his perfectly shaped snowman. No, seriously, it was like how they're drawn in cartoons, every section perfectly spherical and smooth. Hmm, he wasn't kidding that it was good, but it certainly wasn't the best I had ever seen.

I walked around to the front of it, catching his eye.

"So, how's your one coming along?"

I looked over my shoulder, as did he, revealing my pathetic attempt.

"Never mind."

He started to add features to its face, poking two eyes, a nose and shaping a mouth from the snow. When all was done he stood back, hand on his hips, and sighed heavily.

"Well, you have to admit, it's much better than yours!"

Cocky show-off.

I gave a fake smile, walking up to the snowman, pretending to be interested in its detail. As soon as I was close enough, I did the first thing that popped into my head, and kicked the base of it.

The horror on my boyfriend's face was evident as I raised my leg, but it very quickly vanished, as I was too weak to dislodge the finely sculpted snow, instead my foot felt like I had just kicked a wall.

"Ow," I said flatly, more embarrassed than actually hurt.

"Why is it that every time we come here you end up stupidly injuring yourself?"

My bottom lip shot up into a pout, making me look very childish, "Shut up! I wanna go back home now, if you don't mind?"

That's when his face looked as if he was badly hurt, "You want to go home? As in back to your Dad?"

That's when I realised, I had been away from that place for so long, I no longer thought of it as home. Well actually, I don't think I ever referred to it as anything other than my 'house', but never my home.

My face relaxed as I looked at him kindly, "No, home with you."

* * *

When we finally got home, which felt like forever due to a traffic jam, we immediately stripped of all our clothes. By that I mean our winter clothes, not our actual clothes. Oh, you know what I mean. Anyway, I took both mine and Jack's coats and hung them up in their places, on hooks by the door.

"Have we got any missed calls?" He questioned me.

"Hang on, I'll check now," I walked over to the machine, looking at the small screen, "Apparently we have seven. Hmm someone really wanted to get hold of you."

He walked up behind me, leaning over as if to check himself, "Probably just my mum, I think it's near my Dad's birthday now."  
"You think? Surely you should now that, I mean, even I know my Dad's birthday."

Then, right when we were about to back away from the phone, it started to ring violently, as if it was fed up with being ignored all the other times.

My eyes flicked to Jack, "You get it, it is your phone."

"Hmm, you just don't want to talk to anyone, don't you?"

"Ha, how'd you guess?"

He grinned at me, then picked up the phone and held it to his ear.

"Yeah, who is-" apparently he was interrupted.

"Yes, he is he-" and again, this person was really impatient, whoever they are.

"What do you mean you can't-" wow, something must be really important, or this person is the most impolite person in the world.

"Kay, I'll tell him, yeah, bye."

He set down the phone, worry evident on his face, which made me worry. Who would he tell, and was it actually a serious problem?

"Hiccup," oh god, it had to be me, it's always me. No, maybe it isn't and he's just telling me about the conversation, that has to be it!

"That was Miss Roberts," okay, not looking good, but still it could be about Finn. Jack would get worried about him too, they are friends after all.

"Your Dad has gone missing."

**Don't worry, Toothless is in the next chapter! I would make some excuse that it was intentional, but I actually just forgot about him and Bunnymund... WAAAHH! I feel bad now :'(**


	15. The Search Begins

**Oh wow! I have people talking about this Fic on tumblr! **

**Thank you to: because-we-stare-at-stars, orbmason7 and captaintahno! :D**

My mind was blank, "What? What do you mean he's missing? How does someone lose a six foot, thirteen stone hulking bear of a man?"

Jack moved back slowly, perhaps a bit intimidated by my panicked shouting, "Hiccup, just calm down, alright, this won't help."

I flung my arms up in the air, "Calm down! It's easy for you to say calm down, your Dad is not a seriously depressed who has suddenly person gone missing!"

I paced back and forth, "Oh god, this is my fault. I wanted to go to the park, I made us miss all those calls, we should have come home! He could be anywhere by now!"

Jack took a tentative step forward, arms half stretched out to me.

"No, forget that, I shouldn't have stayed away for so long! I should have gone back and tried to improve our relationship myself, not get some woman who has never met to do it for me! He must think I despise him!"

I stubbed my toe on the corner of that sofa, but I ignored it, continuing to pace, "This must have been since I heard him cry in his appointment, if I had only gone to him then, maybe this wouldn't have happened!"

I turned around, prepared to walk another length of the room. Instead, however, I collided with Jack's chest, then being flung back as he held me by the shoulders at arm's length.

"Hiccup, stop! I am not going to let you go back to how you were last time you got depressed!" He half shouted, trying to assert himself.

I attempted to wriggle out of his grip, "But, if I was there, if I had talked to him-"  
"No, it was too early then! This is not your fault, this is something he has done himself, this is not your fault!"

I looked up at him, prepared for an argument, but something made me stop. Maybe it was because something that resembled reason had clicked back into place in my head, or just maybe it was because of the tears welling up in Jack's eyes.

"W-well what do you want me to do? We can't just sit here!"

He looked me in the eyes, his now clearing of their tears, "No, that's what we are going to do. We are going to stay in tonight, then tomorrow, we will file a missing person report, unless Sandra has done one already. After that, we will let the authorities handle it, and not get in their way."

I stared at him throughout his speech; he really wants me to just sit here? No, I can't do that, I have to find my Dad before he does something awful.

I looked him in the eyes yet again, I would find him, with or without Jack's help, "Fine, I'll stay tonight, but the first thing tomorrow, I am looking for him while you handle the missing person report."

He seemed to sense that something was wrong, but was willing to believe that I would hang around until morning.

"That's fine, but remember, tonight we stay here."

* * *

I was forced to eat dinner that night, Jack practically force fed me whatever it was that he had cooked, I didn't even take notice of what I was putting in my mouth. He was insistent that the best thing to do was to carry on as normal, but how could I? How can you act as normal when something like this happens? It's just impossible. But I had to wait until he was out of the way before I could act.

And that is exactly what I was doing right now. We were both in bed, yet neither of us were going to sleep. Jack had suddenly decided today that he wanted to read in bed, but I know it was because he didn't trust me to act rationally, which I suppose was totally justified. Oh well, he has to sleep at some point, it's just a matter of seeing who could last the longest.

Just when it looked as if he was about to give up, a weird feeling settled in my stomach; I needed the toilet. Crap, he'll obviously want to know where I'm going and then make sure I come back, but I can't let myself pee in the bed.

As soon as I swung my legs out the bed and started for the door, Jack instantly set upon me, "Where are you going," he asked in a suspicious tone.

See, I was right, "To the toilet, unless you want to have a soggy bed, I would let me go."

He remained quiet, then suddenly declared, "I just remembered that I haven't brushed my teeth yet!"

Sure you haven't, it's not like you religiously take care of them or anything.

I walked up to the bathroom door, Jack practically on the balls of my feet, and turned when I got there.

"Jack, you are not coming in while I'm peeing!"

"And why not? What are you going to do in there? I've seen it all before."

This was getting frustrating, "It's weird all right! Let me pee in peace."

I walked through the door and closed, then quickly re-opened it and spoke again, "And the windows aren't big enough, not even for me."

He still came in anyway, barging through the door in a hurried state.

"Jack, what the hell!" I shouted, still sitting down on the toilet.

"Oh, you really are going," He looked genuinely surprised by this, as if he thought I would be plotting something in here, in a toilet.

"Well what the hell would I be doing in a room where people have a crap or a piss! Now get out!"

"Well, as I'm already here, I might as well brush my teeth now."

He actually brushed his teeth right then and there, making me feel extremely awkward, especially as he kept looking at me. my face grew red, from a mixture of annoyance and embarrassment as he finished up and left the room. I then did my business and also left, closing the door behind me, only to find Jack had actually waited for me, leaning on the wall. This was getting truly irritating now.

* * *

Eventually, we got back into bed, both continuing to read, but it was only an hour before I noticed that Jack was finally starting to lose his battle with sleep, now he just had to give in to it. His head kept bobbing up and down as he drifted in and out of consciousness, each time the space between each movement would become longer, until it stopped entirely. I waited until he started snoring lightly, and then quietly got out the bed and walked over to the wardrobe, pulling out my warmest trousers and jumper, slowly putting them on over my pyjamas.

Checking that Jack was still asleep, I tiptoed out of the room, into the living room and over to a cupboard, inside finding an average sized bag, which I filled with a torch, my phone, Jack's keys, as well as my own. I thought about putting some food in as well, but decided against it as I wouldn't be gone that long, I'll be back before Jack wakes up. I pulled out a drawer on the cupboard's far left side and found various items such as scissors, a screwdriver and a hammer. I picked up the screwdriver and placed it in my pocket, just in case.

I walked back over to the edge of the bedroom and checked one last time that Jack was still asleep, staring at him for longer than I should. I watched his eyelids flutter every so often as he dreamed about whatever, I studied his rising and falling chest, feeling mine begin to twist as my throat convulsed. I don't know why I looked for so long, I would be back by morning, he wouldn't even know I had left, then I would simply repeat this until I find Dad. What he doesn't know can't hurt him. Hurriedly tearing my eyes away, I walked out the door, grabbing my winter coat on the way, and descended down the steps and into the cold, dark night.

* * *

I walked for what seemed like forever, when in reality it was probably only an hour or ninety minutes at most. I called my Dad multiple times, not knowing what I would actually say if he answered, but I had to try. It would ring multiple times before going to voicemail, making me unsure as to whether this was a good thing or not. If it was on, at least there was a chance to contact him, but if that was the case, why is he not picking up?

I looked up to the sky, seeing nothing but black with white flecks scattered everywhere. An airplane flew overhead, making a mighty rumbling noise that heard my head, it was really too late for such a booming sound. As soon as it passed by I heard another noise, one that sounded like a group of people whispering and laughing about something in a sinister fashion. The longer they continued, the more I became unsettled, and my pace increased dramatically, leaving them behind me.

My mind thought about all the places that I could go to find my Dad, my first thought being the house to check properly for myself. I entered the house to find it quiet and gloomy, the air smelling strange and feeling stuffy, as if it had not been disturbed for while. From a quick glance around the room, I could find no sign of anyone being home, but I kept my hopes up. I walked over to the living room, the smell of alcohol not being as strong as the last time I was here, hopefully that was a good thing. Hopefully.

I felt the television screen, and found it to be icy cold, obviously not having been watched in a long while. I looked around the back to see that the plug was turned off, strange, he would never turn the plug off, not if he intended to return some time soon. This instantly put my mind on edge, even when I saw Dad last he was still in front of the television, granted he was passed out from alcohol, but he still had it on. I wonder if he has been gone a long while now.

Long while... Toothless! My mind burst into gear upon remembering that I hadn't tended to my pet for extremely long time, instantly feeling a massive surge of guilt for completely forgetting about him. I scrambled up the old, creaky stairs, once falling to my knees, forcing me to continue the rest of the way on all fours. I crawled to my feet when I reached the top and burst into my seemingly undisturbed room. I found that it was actually more disturbed then it appeared, as Toothless's cage had been removed, and a rash, panicked inspection of the drawers revealed that so had his food and toys. Oh god, don't let him have starved dead, I can't lose anyone else, I can't have caused another loss!

I left the room, panicking even more, I stood in the door way, hand on the frame, wondering what could have happened to him. Hopefully Dad had taken care of him in my absence, it's not like he could leave him to die, right? I tested my theory by rushing to his room, yet found nothing, just a dark empty room filled by a large bed, a locker and a wardrobe, nothing else. I sat down on the bed, feeling as if I was about to cry as I pawed through Dad's bedside drawer still looking for some sign of him being here. Again, nothing, not a trace, it was as if he suddenly ceased to exist anymore. There was nothing here at all, this was entirely pointless.

I put my hands over my eyes, trying to force the tears from flowing out, I have had enough of being weak and wallowing about, I need to act now. But my will is waning, there is just no sign, no clue as to where he could be. I laughed bitterly at how foolishly hopeful I was being, what did I expect? It's not like he was going to run off yet still leave me a note saying 'Hiccup, I have run away, don't tell anyone, but I am this place. Come find me now, Dad'.

Just when I was about to give up all together, I heard a small movement from under the bed, something resembling a rapid scuttling sound. Great, there's a rat in the house, nothing else in here could be small enough to sound like that. Unless... No, it has to be! I flew off the bed and threw myself onto the floor, clawing the thick covers out of the way so that they no longer impeded on my vision. And there it was, a wire cage, housing a small shape inside. Toothless, he was alright! I looked to the side and saw a half empty box of food by the cage, at least that meant Dad had been feeding him.

Clawing the cage out from under the bed, I peered inside, finding him in a deep slumber, his chest rising and falling peacefully. He was in a slumber so deep, one from which I didn't want to wake him. So, I grabbed his food and stuck it into my bag, trying not to break the box,, and carefully picked the cage up. I hugged it tightly to my chest, hoping that it wouldn't be too heavy for me to carry back to Jack's. Despite the fact it would give me away, I couldn't leave Toothless alone again, not now that no-one is coming back for him.

I descended back down the stairs, though much more slowly this time, looking at the clock when I reached the bottom. Three O'clock, I had better go back, despite the fact I haven't found anything yet, it would be even worse if Jack wakes up and I'm not there, he would never let me out of his sight again; at least I can try and hide Toothless somewhere until I can make a believable excuse on how I acquired him again.

I slowly walked out the front door, giving the house on last look, and then locked it behind me, going down the dark road to return back home.

* * *

On my way, it began to rain heavily, so I had to put my hood up, and carefully scoop Toothless into my button-up pocket so that he didn't get wet too. It was a true testament to how much of a deep sleeper he is, he didn't even stir in the slightest. While I was grateful that it kept me dry in this weather, The hood did cause problems at one point, as one of two guys in an alley mistook me for a girl, calling me cute. I recognised his friend's cynical laugh as he took a few intimidating steps forward, these were the people who were laughing and whispering earlier.

It was only when his friend said I was a guy that he stopped looking at me. Although that did not quieten the scared lump in my throat, which was forcing me to keep one hand on the screwdriver like a lifeline. Who knows where the rest of the group is, probably in the shadows somewhere, but I don't intend to find out.

I continued to walk until I reached the front of the apartment complex, seeing that the light in Jack's was still off, making me feel more confident that he was still asleep. I looked at my phone again, it was now five fifteen, he would wake up for school not too long from now, meaning that I should really get back. Despite how transparently futile it was, I decided to give my Dad one last call before I went up.

I stood there, still staring at the window as the same tone rang continuously, but then something happened. It was answered. My eyebrows shot up in shock as I began shouting into the speaker.

"Dad! Dad, are you there?" My voice trembled as my hands shook violently.

I heard him mumble on the other side of the line, swearing under his breath, assuring me it was him. And then, as suddenly as my hopes were raised, they came colliding back down, as Dad dropped the phone.

I heard it hit a surface, and it hit hard. The smack went straight through my head, followed by constant interference on the line. The buzzing was loud and distressing, breaking whatever hope I had of hearing him clearly. In the brief moments of clarity there was the sound of vehicles and people walking, but that was not helpful, that could be anywhere.

I heard him swear some more, and then scrape the phone off the ground, "Hi-p, I- so-y-"

But then the line went dead.

I stood there, staring at the phone in disbelief, eyes twitching slightly, and then I cracked. I sank to my knees on the floor, crying loudly. He was alive, but where was he? What did he try to tell me? Would they be the last words I ever heard him say? In my anguish I violently threw my phone onto the nearby grass, attempting to relive some of my distress. The phone made a slapping sound as it hit dirtying the screen in the damp, saturated mud.

"Fuck, fuck," I put my bawled fists to my forehead, "Fuck!"

* * *

About twenty minutes later, I had collected my phone, as well as myself and began to walk back up to Jack's flat. I began to think of how I could explain everything; I would have to go in the shower, it would be the only way to explain why I'm wet, but where to hide Toothless? Maybe under the bed, or somewhere in the cupboards that Jack doesn't ever use, I'm sure he has one of those somewhere. I put Jack's key into the slot, turning it as I continued to think of possible hiding places.

Then, movement in my coat pocket attracted my attention, Toothless had seemingly woken up, and was croaking lowly. Great, the moment I actually need him to be quiet, he decides to make noise, maybe it was because he awoke to find himself in a confined space. I tapped the door open with my foot as I withdrew him from the holder, seeing his face hold a bit of confusion, and then finally remembrance, when he saw me for the first time in forever.

I continued to look at his face as I walked inside, putting my bag down by the coat rack, carefully placing my pet down on the floor, and then taking my coat off, putting it back in its place. Just as I bent down to pick Toothless up again, a light flicked on in the bedroom, crap. It had to be now that he wakes up, when I had just gotten back, my shoes still on and my clothes soaking, with a lizard in my hand. There would be no chance or possible reason to explain this. In short, I'm screwed.

I froze as I heard Jack call my name, each time his voice growing louder and more frantic, eventually hearing him fumble around with the covers trying to feel for me. I could practically feel the fear in every word, every syllable that he spoke.

I heard him begin to swear, making my mind ask questions again. Do I pretend to be in the kitchen or something, or should I just keep quiet and face the consequences when he finds me.

I tried to call out, about to enact the first option, but just as I did, Jack came running out the bedroom, the white bed sheet wrapped around him, covering his body. The fact he looked like a lost child in that sheet made my heart hurt even more, as well as the fact that I was causing him to feel like this. I am a horrible boyfriend to him.

He ran anxiously to the kitchen, not seeing me in the tiny corridor that led to the door from the living room. I heard his feet pat on the ground as his breathing grew increasingly rapid, he approached the bathroom and burst in, yet again finding that I was not there. He returned to the living room, not ten meters away from me, and he stood in the room pacing back and forth.

As he turned to pace back for the third time, he eventually saw me, having to do a double take when he did so. Both his face and mine were impassive and blank, but I could tell he was feeling a mix of betrayal, fear and anger; it was all in his brilliant blue eyes, which now looked as if they held a sapphire flame within them.

He stood up straight, and let the cover drop to the floor, revealing that he was, yet again, entirely unclothed.

I tried to think of a sentence to say, but none came to me, so I remained quiet, watching as Jack advanced uncertainly towards me, as if he couldn't believe what he was seeing. He stood directly in front of me, looking down on me as the shadows hid most of his features, making it hard to tell his expression, but I imagined it to be saddened. Just as I was about to open my mouth again, he grabbed my wrist, forcing me to show him that I was in fact holding Toothless.

He laughed bitterly under his breath, and just stared at the creature in my hand, his eyes glistening in the dark, no doubt coated by tears. He returned his gaze to my face again, and I was about to open my mouth for the third time, but was interrupted again, as he dragged me over to the sofa, pushing me forcefully down onto it, then going back and grabbing the cage, setting it down on the table in front of me.

He sat beside me, taking Toothless from my hand and putting him back into his cage. I watched as he scuttles around for a second, and then quickly found a comfortable position to settle down in.

"You just couldn't do it, could you?" the sudden outburst frightened me, making me jump a bit.

He turned to me, his face now illuminated by the light of the moon peaking through the blinds, "You promised me Hiccup!"

His eyes were full of hurt as tears rolled silently down his face, "You promised."

I didn't know how to react, this was the first time I had ever seen him cry, and it was at a time when I should be the melancholy one, it was my Dad missing after all.

He returned to staring at the opposite wall, then leaning forward and raised his head to the ceiling, his breath coming out in interrupted bursts.

"Why do you not want me to look for my Dad?" I spoke the first thing that came to my mind, even if it was not the most appropriate for the current situation.

He laughed again, though this time it was not bitter, "It wasn't that, it was just that I didn't want you to endanger yourself by acting rashly."

I mentally noted that I should not mention the screwdriver or the guys in the alley.

"Look, I'm sorry I lied Jack, but I can't do nothing, I have to try and find my Dad," my voice was soft and weak, trying not to upset him further.

"I know, but why do you have to do it alone?"

"Because he's my Dad."

"And that means I can't help?"

I didn't like the way this was going, so I didn't respond.

He sighed heavily, "If you're ever going to do this again, at least tell me so that I can come with you, that way you won't get lost too."

He said no more and went into the bedroom, leaving me to sit there in silence, and think about what I would do in the future.

* * *

He emerged, a while later, calm and fully dressed. We didn't speak for the rest of the morning, hell, we didn't even walk to school together. Instead, Jack drove to the nearest police station to file a report, ordering me to go to school before he did so. I had the feeling he had even phoned the school to ensure someone would make sure I was there, so I went without arguing.

When I arrived at the gates, my suspicions were seemingly confirmed, as Miss Roberts was standing near them, waiting for me. As soon as she saw me, she smiled sympathetically, receiving a blank expression in return, and approached me.

"Morning, Hiccup," I noticed that she consciously left out the word 'good'.

"Morning," I mumbled.

As we walked inside together, she explained to me when she last had contact with my Dad. She told me that on the penultimate day of the last two weeks, Dad was out of contact, so she thought nothing of it, but when she could not reach him the next day, she grew worried. She then headed to my house only to find it empty and eerily quiet.

I told her about the fact that I had called him, with many failed attempts, apart from the last one, which ended up being interrupted. That certainly peaked her interest, although in my mind it just meant that he was no longer contactable.

"So, where is Jack?" She was obviously wondering that all the way during our walk.

"He drove to the police station to file a missing persons report."

"And you didn't go with him?"  
I looked up at her, watching her expression closely, "He thinks that the best thing is for me to carry on as normally as possible until they find him."

I didn't like her reaction, it looked as if she agreed with him.

"That's probably the best thing for now, no sense in killing yourself when he will turn up soon?"

"Why would I kill myself?"  
"I meant as in killing yourself from worry and stress." Hmph you couldn't have seen it my way for once, could you?

* * *

I went through the day quietly, everyone acting as if I didn't exist, well everyone apart from Mic, but she only spoke to me when Finn wasn't around to drag her off. I didn't tell her what had happened, just that I wasn't in the best mood right now as I had been having family problems, leading to her wishing to me luck in resolving them soon, and hoping that nothing serious happened. It's too late for that, serious has been and gone.

I must have been giving off a foul aura, because as the day went on, more and more people avoided me. I momentarily wondered why, as I'm not exactly imposing, but I figured it was because they remembered the head butting incident last time I was in a foul mood. Even Snotlout appeared to be a bit wary in the fleeting second he was around me, and he was certainly stronger than me by far.

I arrived back at the flat after a walk that took me much longer than usual, I decided to walk slowly, in the vain hope that the longer I was outside the more chance I had of encountering my Dad. I flopped down dramatically on the sofa, grunting heavily as I landed. I grabbed the remote of the table and turned on the rarely used television, hoping that the local news would show something, anything about my Dad.

After five minutes of boring weather, there he was, but it was not what I was hoping, simply them telling the world that he was missing, advising them to report any sightings. It upset me that the picture was not a recent one, he didn't have his impressive beard and he was not nearly as bulky, but then again, we were never one for taking pictures together. Well, at least this means that Jack has finally finished at the police station now that would just leave the problem of trying to make him not hate me anymore.

No sooner had I thought that did the door slam shut. I didn't even here it open. Ok, here it goes. I heard him walk behind me, kicking his boots off and sighing heavily. I didn't turn around, but I could imagine the frown dirtying his pure, pleasing porcelain face.

He came up behind me and stood there for a while, I could feel his gaze on the back of my neck. I imagined he was doing his habit of opening and closing his mouth again. I heard a rapid shaking sound and figure he shook the thought away, then the sound of footsteps. Now or never Hiccup.

"Jack, wait, I need to talk to you."


	16. Rescue

**Oh God, the angst is getting too much! That's it, I'm going to write a pure smut one shot, this fandom needs more smut!**

I heard nothing behind me, Jack had just frozen, probably just staring at me in surprise. It's hardly all that shocking though, I'm not usually the one to take the mature route and talk about our problems, instead doing something rash, like tonight for example. That was definitely one of the more extreme cases.

Then, the sound of footsteps returned to my ears, easing the tension in the room by a notch. My eyes followed Jack's lithe form as he walked around the table and sat in the arm chair to my right. Well, I wasn't expecting for him to sit next to me anyway. Still, this was obviously more upsetting for him than I thought, did a simple promise really mean that much to him? I wonder how he would act under this situation.

"So, what do you want to talk about?" he questioned, crossing one leg over the other, leaning his knee on the arm of the chair, attempting to look like he had control over the situation.

"You know what I want to talk about."

He furrowed his brow, obviously irritated, "Okay then, what part? The part where you lied to me, or where you disappeared during the middle of the night without letting me know, only for me to awake and panic?"

He got up and paced yet again, "You didn't even leave a note Hiccup! You could be anywhere, and if something had happened I wouldn't know!"

"But nothing did happen!"  
"That's not the point! You're trying to help find your Dad right?"

I nodded as he continued, "Well how are you going to do that if you're dead in a ditch somewhere?"

I began to think, seeing some sense in what he was saying.

"And how would that make me feel? It would make me feel like how you are now, except worse, because I could never get you back!"

Okay, that hit me hard. I would never wish this feeling upon anyone, not even someone I despised. Well, if I hated them enough then maybe, but it would have to be under extreme circumstances.

He sighed and sat directly in front of me, perched on the table, "If you're going to do this, let me help you, you have to open up more and accept other people's help, not do it all alone. When people want to help it's a bit unreasonable to shoot them down without a try"

My ears pricked at that, "I'm being unreasonable, all I want to do is find my Dad! If anything you're the unreasonable one for stopping me!"

He growled loudly in frustration, leaning closer to me, "Look Hiccup, if anything I have been more than generous to you, putting up with all your shit and helping you with your genuine troubles, but that never seems to be enough for you! And I know that sometimes you regret it, I can see it on your face, rarely, but it is there!"

He leaned back on the table, placing his left hand behind for support and rubbing his right through his hair.

My face was red, whether from embarrassment or shame, I didn't know. But it wasn't anger, I knew that much, as I knew that he was right. I hate to admit it, I really do, but I do treat him quite poorly, even though he did help me during times of need. He did all that and yet I still don't act any nicer to him in any minute way.

I stared absentmindedly at the surface of the table, feeling Jack's gaze on my face. How was I meant to reply to this, it was all well and good being able to think this, but I have to actually communicate this as well, otherwise this relationship might as well be moving backwards. I wonder if that's what we have been doing all this time, just doing nothing but moving backwards, heading for disaster.

I felt defeated, though maybe that wasn't a bad thing, "Fine, but what do you actually want me to do then?"

He looked as if he was about to face palm in frustration, I guess I should've asked how I was meant to do this.

"What I want, Hiccup, is for you to open up more and accept help, even if that means waiting for the other person to become available to help to!"

He moved so that he was next to me, putting on hand on my knee, "I promise to help you find your Dad, in any way I can, but for that to happen you can't do things like disappear in the night! Wait until after school or something, at least that way you still get to feel like you're doing something while having someone watch you at the same time."

I considered the options, Jack is making sense, if I go missing due to some horrible circumstance I will never be found unless someone knows where I am, making all the looking pointless. I sighed and scratched my forehead, but then again, all the time that I wait means there's more time that Dad goes unfound. Then I remembered that the police would also be looking for him, but then again, they would also be busy with other issues, meaning that my Dad would most likely be a second priority. Still, it gave me some comfort at least.

"Fine, Jack, I will wait for you before I look for Dad, but promise me that you will help me, won't you?"

He nodded, closing his eyes as he did so. I turned my head, watching Toothless sleep peacefully as he spoke again, "Of course Hiccup, I wouldn't do anything else."

He patted my knee for emphasis and comfort, continuing to look deeply into my eyes. I breathed out through my nose, if I wanted to actually improve my relationship with Jack while still looking for my Dad, this was the best way to do it. Actually, it was the only way.

"And I promise to do the same," I whispered gently, watching as Jack's face light up with pleasure.

"Good, then how about we go and look now then?"

* * *

We left the flat about twenty minutes later, each packing a bag of food and drink, out phones, an umbrella each and a torch each, just in case we were out late. The sun was still high and strong when we left, meaning daylight would persist for a long while to come, making the task slightly easier, and much less dangerous.

"Got everything?" I asked, turning to watch Jack exit the building, having some trouble with the door, in which his bag got caught in.

Finally freeing it, he looked over and grinned, "Yep, let's get going."

We wondered the streets mindlessly, going to places that many homeless people often went to, such as Hostels and help centres, yet we found nothing. No-one had even seen anyone resembling my Dad, and if they had, they certainly wouldn't forget it anytime soon. All we found were more lost souls, whether they had intentionally disappeared or were just down on their luck, I didn't know, and I wasn't sticking around to find out, not when some held a wild look in their eyes.

Jack and I passed an alleyway, a common place for the gathering of the lost and those who want to disappear. It was dark, shrouded by the shadows of the buildings on either side, making it look rather menacing. I could see a few people from where I stood, but they were women. I think. Jack had yet to notice my staring down the alley way, but I knew what his reaction would be when he did. I cleared my throat, catching his attention after I repeated the action a few more times.

Sapphire eyes locked with mine, which then darted down the alley and back again. They seemed to be confused at first, but once I gestured with my head, they understood, and gave the expected reaction.

"Really? You wanna go down there?" He walked over and peered down the alley, giving the supposed women a sceptical look.

"Come on, where else would you go if you didn't want to be found? He might not be there, but it's worth a try."

Hesitation was still evident, but after I furrowed my brow a little, he soon conceded, following me rather closely. I couldn't tell if he was worrying for his safety, mine or a mixture of both, but I reached and grabbed his hand regardless, caressing it with my thumb, as the shadow absorbed our bodies. The action earned me a strange look from some of the alley's residents, but a firm look from my white haired accomplice kept them at bay, obviously seeing him as more of a threat than me. Well, I am probably only a little stronger than them anyway.

The smell was disgusting, as if a wet dog had crawled down here, died and rotted for about a millennia or so. Flies and other insects were constantly disturbing the air around my face, although I was lucky in that very few hit me. I turned rapidly at a sudden choking sound, seeing that Jack had apparently swallowed one of the repulsive creatures. I gave him a worried look, but he signalled that it was okay, digging his drink out to wash away the taste, which I supposed was foul.

However, the noise did not go unnoticed by anyone else, as I heard a hoarse grunt behind me, as if a rather bulky, grumpy man had just woken up suddenly, and was nowhere near happy about it. I wondered if it was my Dad, feeling rather blessed if it was, but when he started swearing under his breath, it was clear that it wasn't. What did worry me further was that it sounded as if he was even bigger, and had friends, as he was obviously talking to someone close by. When it became apparent that he was talking to a person only he could see we left with haste, for he was now even more dangerous than I thought.

We continued down the dark passage, eventually colliding with a wall, which I didn't see due to the lack of light.

Rubbing my nose, I turned to a giggling Jack, "Now's probably a good time to use the torch."

I considered it, but then had a thought, "If we use it, we could attract more unwanted attention."

"And if we don't, we could run into some very unpleasant people!"

Our voices were low, so as to not draw attention, but it became apparent that we needed to keep moving, as another group was awakening in a nearby bush.

We walked quickly and quietly, but soon found ourselves back onto a brightly lit street. The light burned my eyes, forcing me to cover them for a second. Once they had adjusted I looked myself over, seeing that I was relatively unscathed, with only a small dust patch from my hit with the wall.

"Oh crap!" I heard behind me.

"What's wrong?" I asked hurriedly, turning and preparing for the worst.

"No, literally, crap!" Jack cried, pointing at his shoe, showing that he had stood in some excrement.

I hope it wasn't human.

"Oh, scrape it off on the ground, we can wash it when we get back," I looked at his clearly horrified face, it was as if someone had just said they were going to shoot him.

He started to a movement resembling a demented dance, dragging his foot madly along the pavement. Passersby gave him some odd looks, some probably believing he was a resident of the alley from which we had just emerged.

* * *

After getting as much as he could off of him, we walked around for a few more hours, checking with the police if they had found anything yet. The woman behind the glass, which I assumed was bulletproof, seemed to be a bit put out by my questioning, saying that it takes longer than a few hours to find a person who has been missing for a few days. I decided it best not to aggravate a member of the police force, and simply thanked her for her time, quickly leaving the building before people began to question the faint aroma of faeces.

I stood outside the impressive building, looking at the lions on either side of the grand entrance.

I turned my attention towards the sky, sighing yet again, "Well, this is a complete success," I said, my voice dripping with sarcasm.

"Well, what if you try phoning him, have you already tried that?"

Oh yeah, I never told him that I managed to get in contact for all of three seconds, but that was redundant right now. Instead of answering I simply whipped out my phone, dialling the number; it was a slim hope, but there is a chance that the phone is not completely ruined. I hit the last number and pressed the dial key, holding the device to my ear, hoping to hear the dial tone.

As I waited, I moved over to lean against the right lion, getting out of the way of the other pedestrians, Jack sitting down on the step in front of me, watching me intently. Nothing happened for a short while, but then the dial tone began, raising my hopes of it connecting, at least this meant the phone wasn't destroyed, but still probably damaged.

Then it happened again, a connection! Granted there was still interference, but it had worked! I laughed breathily, bending and straightening my knees. Jack raised his eyebrows at me as a smile grew on his face.

"Dad! Dad!" I shouted down the phone, not caring about some of the looks I received.

I heard a mumble on the other end of the line, followed by static.

"Where are you?" My voice was filled with a combination of excitement and worry, if he could only speak at the right moment, maybe he could avoid getting interrupted by static.

I heard him give a noise of acknowledgment, a weak one, but then static cut in again. My face fell as I shouted for him again, pacing up and down the steps as I did so. Unlike last time, the interruption was continuous, probably from the damage over time. Jack's smile disappeared as I stopped walking, still holding the phone to my ear.

"Dad?" I called in a small frail voice.

More static, just continuous and unrelenting, but then, "Frankie and-"

Then the line went dead, and my phone told me that the person I was trying to contact was unavailable, his phone must have finally given in to its wounds.

My eye twitched, all of the important part of his speech was blocked out, yet I got that! God really hates me!

I slammed the phone shut and threw it into my bag, stomping off down the steps.

Jack came running up behind me, signalled by the sound of fast paced steps, "Well, I'm guessing it didn't work?"

"Oh no, it worked. But the only thing I managed to hear before his phone died was 'Frankie and', then nothing."

"Oh."

"I want to go home now, I'm tired and hungry."

* * *

We walked home relatively quickly, hand in hand all the way, Jack's thumb caressing mine in an attempt to comfort me, earning him an appreciative smile in return. We tried to flow smoothly through the large crowd, but occasionally we would collide with someone, apologising even if it wasn't necessarily our fault, it was just easier that way. Most people would accept it, some would try and take it further, but we never stayed still long enough for anything to happen.

It started to rain for the second day in a row, meaning the paths became more crowded as people put up their umbrellas, the two of us included, making it harder to get around. While the umbrellas did keep most of the water off, occasionally they would collide with someone else's, and any water that had collected on top would fall down on us, luckily it was never a big collection, or we would be seriously cold.

I had never been so happy to get home as I was today, I just wanted to wallow in self pity now. But then again, perhaps that went against what I promised Jack earlier? I don't think so, but I'll try and be considerate of him this time. I threw our bags into the wardrobe, putting both our coats on their hangers as Jack went to the bathroom. I bent down to check his shoes, finding the rain had washed most of the mess off, but I would still clean them anyway, just to be safe.

As I put them in a memorable place, I heard Jack come out of the bathroom, looking relieved.

"Hey, do you want anything to eat?"

"Ice cream. I would like ice cream please."

"Okay, I'll bring it over, go watch the T.V or something."

I wondered over to the table, picking up the remote from its surface. I couldn't find anything I wanted to watch, but I assumed Jack wanted to watch something as he suggested this, so I left it on a comedy channel, even though it was on the adverts at the moments, and I didn't feel like laughing right now. I really hope Jack has ice cream, I could use it right now.

I stood there, still staring at the screen until my vision was blocked by a black pot, with a label on the side, mint chocolate huh? Well, it was better than nothing. I took it, not even asking if he had a bowl, and dug out the spoon that was imbedded in the sweet desert. I shoved a large portion into my mouth as both me and Jack sat down next to each other on the sofa. I was about to eat my second scoop, when I looked at Jack.

"Open up," I said slowly, putting the spoon near his mouth.

It wasn't meant to be a sexual moment, just one to show my appreciation of what he did for me today. I placed the spoon on his tongue as he closed his mouth around it, then slowly removing it from between his lips. His eyes widened when his either tongue or teeth made contact with the desert, not expecting it to be so cold. Well, it is ice cream after all.

We sat there, still watching the adverts in silence, taking turn eating ice cream, each time the scoops would get larger as our appetite for the desert grew. I didn't really like mint ice cream before, but right now it looks like it's my favourite thing in the world. It probably won't take long until all the pot is gone, maybe even before the actual programme comes back on.

As if to prove me right, we finished to pot before the show came back on, but only just. I felt sick, and my stomach was bloated, and from Jack's face I could tell he felt the same way. Still, it did take my mind off of things for a while. My eyes were drawn to the television, watching some man prance about talking about looking like a 'fat Chinese man' when he smiles. I was watching, but not really paying attention, as if I was in my own little world, withdrawn from this one.

Then I heard something that caught my interest, violently ripping my mind away from its world. I looked wide eyed at the screen, but the moment had already passed.

Getting up quickly, I stumbled around for the remote, "Jack, is it possible to rewind this?"  
"Hmm, yeah sure. You can do that with all the programmes."

I dug the remote out from its hiding spot between the sofa cushions, pushing my thumb down on the rewind button with haste. As I didn't see what the man was doing when he said whatever it was that caught my interest, I didn't really know where to go back to.

"Did you like a joke or something?"  
"No, he said something that caught my interest, but I wasn't paying enough attention to hear it properly."

I estimated where the appropriate place was and hit the play button. Currently, he was making some joke that I really didn't care about, just wanting to hear what it was that had gotten me so riled up. Then he said it again; he had asked the audience where they liked to eat, and then said where he did, a place called 'Frankie and Benny's'.

I paused the programme, looking at Jack hopefully, this was it! It had to be! I turned my head quickly to Jack, who had a puzzled expression on his face.

"What? I don't get it."

I felt like hitting myself in the face, for a bright boy, he was really oblivious, "Jack, he said Frankie and Benny's is a restaurant, and my Dad mentioned 'Frankie and' before he stopped. This could be where he is!"

His expression cleared of its bewilderment, but then replaced with uncertainty, "Okay, but which Frankie and Benny's is he talking about, there are at least three in the city a mile away, and I think there's one on the outskirts of town."

"Well, we just have to check them all!"  
"All of them?" He shouted, sounding surprised.

"Jack, this is my Dad, I'm not going to leave any stone unturned, besides, it will be quick if you take your car and look in the city while I look at the nearby one."

"But I've never met you're Dad before, he's not exactly going to hope in a car with me?"

I gave him my best pleading face, I would beg if I had to, "Jack, please?"

He melted almost instantaneously.

* * *

Currently, I was running down the path, following Jack's instructions that he had written on a piece of paper. The rain had turned to snow, but luckily it was not setting as the floor was still wet. If it did set it would be trouble, making it hard to move quickly, not that I was that fast of a runner anyway. I wonder what type of restaurant this place is, hopefully it's easy to notice; Jack's directions only go so far, and I really don't want to wander around for half an hour.

I left the housing area, and found myself running alongside the road. I stopped momentarily, wondering if I had taken a wrong turn somewhere. He had said it was on the outskirts of town, but surely it was not this far out, right? Oh well, I just hope that my hoping isn't in vain.

I found it not too much later, luckily it was exactly like I hoped, having a large fluorescent red sign, with a smaller green one underneath it; it was certainly eye catching. The smell of pizza and pasta filled my nostrils, making me assume this was some sort of Italian styled restaurant, or at the very least Italian-American. We would have to come here sometime, it smells nice.

Shaking these thoughts out of my head, I searched the front of the building, seeing nobody around, despite the inside being completely busy yet cheery. There has to be more here, I can't just look around the front and then give up. But where else can I look?

My eyes darted left and right, seeing that there was a small sized passage leading behind the restaurant. I ran down it in an instant, not caring how dark and menacing it looked, if there was a chance he was back here, I would take it with both hands. The sounds of the restaurant stalked me as I continued, becoming louder and louder the further I went, eventually even the sound of my heart beat filled my ears, deafening me.

I reached an open area, filled by cars and a large rubbish receptacle. I scanned the area, seeing not another living soul. My breath heavy, I was ready to scream in frustration, I was sure he would be here! Why, why else would he mention a Frankie in a conversation to me? It doesn't make sense unless he was telling me where he was.

I was about to sink to my knees when I heard a  
sound; a low coughing, followed by somebody shuffling about. Could this be, have I really found him? God, I hope so. My mind started racing as I approached the source of the noises, imagining myself finding a small, emancipated shell of my Dad, no longer the large impressive bear of a human he once was. I imagined him coughing weakly from illness, and his stomach rumbling with hunger, and how that would all go away upon my finding of him. I would actually do something he could be proud of.

My pace quickened, the source of the noise, around the side of a dumpster, growing ever nearer. When I reached the corner, I practically leapt out from the shadows, illuminated by a light above a door.

"Dad?" I shouted as I landed, but he was nowhere in sight.

Instead, all I found was a young man smoking, and his female friend playing around with some material she had randomly found on the floor. They gave me a strange stare, well, it wasn't normal to jump out at people and call them your father.

"Um, no, kid, I don't remember being anyone's father," the boy mentioned, he was barely older than me, two or three years tops, with raven black hair and emerald green eyes.

The woman stood up straighter than she already was, she was an older girl, probably twenty five years of age. "You're really not supposed to be back here you know, so unless you have business here, please leave."  
I looked at both of them again, my expression sunken and disappointed, "Okay, sorry for intruding."

I returned down the alley way, tears streaming down my down my face, he wasn't there, it was all some foolish hope. It was stupid to think that something so obscure as a passing mention could actually be helpful to the situation, it was all hopeless, I wasn't going to find him anytime soon. I exited the alley and sunk to my knees as soon as I re-entered the pathway. My tear, which now flowed heavier, were illuminated by the red light from the sign, giving them a ruby tinge, as if I was crying crimson blood.

I sat there, silently crying as my phone went. It was Jack.

I picked it up and held it to my ear, "He isn't here, he was never here. It was a stupid hope, absolutely stupid."

Jack chuckled on the other end, now was not a time to laugh, "It's not stupid."

How the hell is it not stupid? "Why's that?"

"Because I've found him."

**Okay, the smut is now up too! It's called "I want you legs up."**

** I'll post a link here: **

** s/8866762/1/I-Want-Your-Legs-Up**


	17. Found

I blanked for a second, not daring to blink in case this was actually an illusion.

"Hiccup, did you hear? I found him! He's a bit worse for wear, but I found him!"

"Yeah, I heard you," My voice was soft, making me seem as if I was in a far away world.

"Aren't you happy?"  
"Very."

He had been found, finally! But, what do I do now? Do I get up and scream in joy, or think of what I'm meant to say when we meet again. That'll probably come instinctually to me, although that might not be the best thing in the world. I wonder what he means by worse for wear, does he mean a little battered around, or a complete and utter wreck of a man, one that is barely alive. God I hope it's not the second one.

I cleared my throat after Jack called my name for the second time, "Where are you now?"

"Well, right now I'm sitting in the car watching him in front of the western-most restaurant, he certainly won't get in the car with me. Well, I don't think he's willing to go with anyone to be perfectly honest."

"How do you know that? Surely he'll accept help from someone?"  
"You'd think, but when someone offered him some money he threw it back at them saying he didn't need their pity."  
Huh, so even when he's in such a state he still has to act big and strong in some way or another.

"Keep your eyes on him, I'll come and meet you. And Jack, thank you! Thank you so much!"

I walked for about ten minutes before I found a parked taxi, offering the driver double the usual fee when he initially refused to drive me so far out. This gruff, stubble faced man was entirely disgusting. His beer belly was crammed under the wheel and his long, ginger hair was inundated with grease. The car also smelt really bad too, like there was something dying in the boot. God, I hope this man drives fast, I can't be in here for too long a time.

"So, what's a kid like you doing going so far away from home at this time then?"

Urgh great, I had to be stuck with a chatty one that doesn't know personal boundaries, not someone who focuses on driving and leaving me the hell alone.

"I'm meeting someone at a restaurant."

"For a date?"

"No."

"Something important then?"  
"Yes."

"Family matters?"

"Yes."

He seemed to be put out by my short, haste answers, but I couldn't really care to be honest. If he's not focusing on me, then he'll focus on driving, and we'll get there quicker. I could see him glaring at me in his rear view mirror, but I just blankly stared back at him, my face unreadable. This man gave me the creeps, even more than my nightmares.

"Shouldn't you be watching the road?"  
"Hmph, damn bratty kid."

The ride went by quietly, disturbingly so. It seemed as if the car had been modified to be sound proof, which made me want to get out all that much faster, there was something off about this man, and I didn't want to find out what. God I hope we get there soon. I just want to find my Dad, make up for all the shit that's happened, and make Jack feel very appreciated for what he's done for me.

I don't know whether it was karma for my bad attitude, which I feel was justified as he was just being nosy, or just the wishes of the driver, he didn't drop me off outside the restaurant, instead letting me, rather telling me, out about half a mile away. Well, I got my own back for that, not paying him the whole promised amount, which he didn't check before he drove off. By the time he realises, I'll be gone.

I dug my phone out my pocket and called Jack again.

Upon the sound of it being answered I immediately questioned him, "Are you still watching him?"

"Hello, and yeah, he's still outside the place. Are you nearly here?"  
"Yeah, I'm almost there, and Jack? Thank you again."

He paused for a second, which I hoped was a good thing, "Heh, there's no need to thank me Hic."  
"No really, thank you."

I continued to walk for a while longer, "I'm certain that this is longer than half a mile, that dick really did have the last laugh," I just hope I'm in the right area.

Once again it started to snow, forcing me to increase my pace to a slow jog. The floor wasn't wet, meaning it would set and Dad could freeze. Damn this weather, I thought it was only our town that constantly snowed, but apparently it's this whole area.

I flicked my phone back on again, once more calling Jack, "Jack, I can't seem to find this place, what's it near?"

"Hmm, well there's a few apartment block's to the left of it, and then there's a store called 'Destinies' opposite, it looks like it sells mystical figures and such."

"I'll have to ask someone for directions then."  
"'Kay, see you soon, but get here fast, who knows how long he'll stay here."  
"Yeah, I'll run if I have to, bye."

I tried running for a bit, but there were two problems with that, one I didn't know if I was going the right way, and two, I get tired quickly. So why not ask someone you say? Well, asking would be easier if there was actually anyone living in this town. I walked for five minutes without seeing a single soul, they can't all be asleep surely. When I see another living person, I will practically jump on them and make them give me directions. Well, not really, that would get me arrested, but I would like to anyway.

Finally, I saw someone, a dark figure of a woman, standing by a shop window with her hood up. Well, I assumed it was a woman by the slim figure and pert bottom, but from here it could also be a thin man. I walked closer, hoping that they knew where to go.

"Excuse me? Can you help me out?" I called, getting their attention.

They turned slowly, and I still couldn't see their face properly, "Hmm?"

I sighed, "I said can you give me some directions to a shop called Destinies?"

"Hiccup?" Okay, I knew that voice, but it couldn't be, "Hiccup, is that you?"

The person turned entirely, their face becoming illuminated by a street lamp, showing me that it was Miss Roberts. I was surprised momentarily, but then again, she has to live somewhere.

"Miss Roberts?" Just making sure it actually was her.

"I said to call me Sandra! What are you going here?" her voice was fully of curiosity, "Actually, a better question is what are you doing here alone at this time?"  
I could ask the same thing of you, "I'm not alone, or at least I won't be soon, Jack found my Dad opposite a shop called Destinies, do you know how to get there?"  
"Yeah, it's just a little bit more down that road," She pointed over her shoulder towards a road that forked to the right.

"Thank you, have a nice night."

"Yeah, hope you settle things soon." She watched me as I walked the way she motioned.

I could feel her gaze on my back growing more and more intense as time went on. Then I heard rapidly approaching footsteps.

I turned as they came up right behind me, seeing Miss Roberts running up to me in her high heeled shoes, " On second thoughts, I'll come with you, just to make sure you don't get lost or worse."

Hmm, I get the feeling that's not the only reason she wants to come along.

"Okay, but please keep up."  
"Of course, I would say the same to you."

She wasn't kidding, she really walks fast, dam everybody in the whole world for being taller than me. Why was I born so short, neither of my parents were puny like me when they were my age, so why am I? I was dragged from my thoughts by the ringing of my phone.

"Hic, where are you? It's sure taking you a while to get here."  
"I'm almost there," I looked to Miss Roberts, who nodded at my statement, "Miss Roberts is leading the way."

"Oh Sandra? Ahh, you mean you can't keep up with her don't you?"  
"Hmph," was the only reply he got before I closed the phone.

We finally got to the place, shown by Jack's car being parked not too far from where we were standing. His door was open ajar, meaning that the car light illuminated the interior, showing me that he was staring at a spot with great focus. That must be where Dad is.

The both of us walked up to the car window, and I knocked on it with my knuckles, snapping Jack from his daze.

"Oh, hey, you finally got here," he said as he got out clumsily, he turned his head and did a double take at my accomplice, "Miss Roberts?"

"Hi Jack, nice to see you again."

"Yeah, and you."  
Really, they're going to do this now? "Sorry, but can you have your reunion talk later?"

They both turned slightly sheepish, Jack rubbing the back of his neck and Miss Roberts looking at her feet as she swung one back and forth slowly.

"Right, I'm guessing that Dad is where you were staring?" My voice became urgent from my wanting to get this done quickly and efficiently.

"Yeah, he's just around the side of that dumpster, that's his foot poking out now."

He pointed to a small object by said trash receptacle, and there it was, a very muddy boot. I immediately recognised it as one of Dad's, good he was really here.

My breathing became erratic from anxiety, but I tried to remain strong, being weak would achieve nothing.

"I'll go alone, you two stay here and call an ambulance."  
"But Hic-" Jack tried to persuade me otherwise.

"No, if too many people go he could get antsy and get away."

They both agreed, and Miss Roberts began to phone the ambulance as requested.

I walked tentatively towards the dumpster, not really knowing what to expect. I was worried in the past few hours, but actually doing this was so much more terrifying. This was not in the future, this was now, and it was happening whether I liked it or not. What would he look like? All emancipated and deathly? Beaten and soaked? Or maybe haggard and retched?

I reached the corner and poked my head round, finally seeing him. He was asleep, his breath weak as his chest rose and fell in short bursts, he appeared to be having trouble breathing. He wasn't as bad as I had expected, giving me a faint feeling of relief, however he still looked awful. His arms had lost a slight amount of muscle, and his cheeks were hollowed slightly, the cheek bone more prominent than before. His stomach was bloated from not eating for a while, over all it was quite a surreal sight.

I reached my arm out to feel his greasy, knotted, red hair, but refrained from doing so. I pushed back the tears in my eyes as I knelt down beside him, then turning to nod at the others who were waiting to greet the arriving medics. I sniffed noisily, causing him to give a loud grunt and me to stiffen suddenly, the last thing I want is to startle a man who does this to himself.

I called his name softly, hoping not to startle him, even in his state he is still much stronger than me. When he didn't respond I became more anxious, calling a bit louder. Still no response. He can't be in a coma, he can't be. I lightly touched his arm, and his eyes flew wide open, but apparently he did not actually awake, as they closed quickly after. At least he was conscious, now it was just about him recovering.

I stood back up as I heard the approaching sirens signalling the arrival of the medical team. I watched as Jack talked to a person that I could not yet see, urgency clear on his face as he pointed towards me. I looked back over to my frail Dad for one last time tonight. As much as I would like to, I knew I would not see him for the rest of tonight, for the medics would surely want him to spend the night in hospital.

When I looked back up there were two men and a woman standing in front of me, the men holding a stretcher and the woman clutching a board and phone of some sort. She motioned for me to get out of the way as her partners carefully manoeuvred my father on to the stretcher, making sure to lay him out flat. She then bent down and felt his pulse, taking note of it and quickly feeling for external injuries, not saying a word as she did so.

She looked up at the other two and nodded, telling them to take him to the vehicle, which they did with haste and care. I watched as they took him around the corner, hearing Jack and Miss Roberts give them their thanks for getting here quickly. I too was thankful for that.

The woman then turned to me, a calm look on her face, "You did well, most people break down and cry, impeding our work as they get in the way, wanting to hold their family or friend. But not you, you let us get on with it, so thank you for that."

I got the feeling this woman was neither empathetic sympathetic to any of her patients family or friends.

"Yes well, please look after him," I said weakly, feeling small under her stare.

"Of course, that is our job after all."

She speedily walked back to the car or whatever vehicle they came in, and drove away, shown by the decreasing noise level of the tires on the road. I walked back up to the other two as soon as the sound was completely silence, the usual night time stillness once again engulfing the area.

"You were surprisingly strong through that Hiccup, I'm proud," commented Miss Roberts as soon as I approached.

As if to prove her wrong, I broke down straight away, leaning my head into Jack's chest, dragging him down with me as I sunk to my knees. My tears soaked my face and dampened his hoodie, the salty water seeping into my mouth, causing me to cough a few times. I felt him rub his hand up and down my back as he gave out soothing, comforting words, but all I did was cry harder. It was exhausting keeping all this in, and now it was all flooding out in a mighty surge.

Miss Roberts handed Jack a tissue, which he later used to rub my eyes and nose carefully, looking at me with understanding eyes.

"Shh, it's okay, he'll be fine now," he whispered as he held my face, wiping away a stray tear with his thumb.

"J-Jack, we h-have to see h-him tomorr-row!" My words were interrupted, and any that were together came out as deep sobs, making me wonder if he understood me at all.

"Of course we will."

It took about twenty minutes for me to calm down again, all that time the three of us spent outside Jack's car, him and I in an embrace while Miss Roberts looked on understandingly. She didn't have to stay, but she most likely felt some sense of responsibility for the two of us, as she was the only adult here, even if she wasn't that much older.

I wiped my eyes with the back of my sleeve as I pulled away from Jack, looking deep into his eyes.

"I want to go home now."

"You bet, we'll go straight home and then see him in the morning."

"Yeah."

Miss Roberts cleared her throat, grabbing both our attention, mine more than Jack's, who I think was still staring at me through the corner of his eye.

"Well then boys, I'm going to be off home now then."

Jack turned his eyes to her, "Don't you want a lift there."

She looked up in thought, before shaking her head, "No, I have things to do first, and my home is not that far away anyway."

What could she be doing so late at night?

"Okay then, see you later Sandra!"  
"Bye Jack," she looked at me and smiled kindly, "Goodbye Hiccup."  
"Goodbye... Sandra."  
She looked shock initially, then smile again, though this time it held more warmth to it, and then began to walk up the pathway, until she was no longer visible.

I crawled into the back seat and laid down on my side, not bothering to strap in the seat belts. Jack climbed in the front and looked at me for a moment, then turned to start the car. The car jerk forward suddenly almost knocking me off the seat, Jack just giving me a sheepish grin after it happened. It would be my fault if I fell anyway. As my eyes grew heavy and slid shut, I felt the bumps in the road, and began to imagine what was happening to Dad right not.

When my eyes reopened, I was being carried up the stairs of our building by Jack, again it was bridal style. However, he looked happy enough, and had not yet noticed my awakening, so I said nothing, and kept still. It wasn't until he was going to set me down on the floor that I jumped up, who knows how dirty it is, no one ever cleans it.

He reeled back a little in surprise, "You're awake?"

"Since half way up the stairs on the first floor."

"You mean I carried you all the way up, hurting my back, when you could've walked?" he moaned pathetically.

"Well, you smelled nice, so I didn't want to move," I admitted blankly, causing him to blush a deep shade of red. I think that was the first time I had ever flirted with him.

He moved to the side so that I could get in our room, following me closely after, setting all our things down by the now closed door. I watched him as he moved the bags out the way, an my eyes flickered to the left as he glanced at me quickly. I wanted to thank him for this, I wanted him to feel wanted, not the one always being wanting, because the truth is without him around, I probably would have done some very rash things.

I walked over to the sofa, setting myself down as he went to the kitchen and poured himself some water, gulping it down quickly. He came and joined me after that, but I didn't notice for a while, I was too tense. How was I even going to do this? I am nowhere near experienced at this, but if I don't, Jack might feel as if this relationship is one sided, and I would not have that at all.

I got up and walked into the bedroom, opening a drawer on Jack's side of the bed, inside finding some tissues, spare change and other knick-knacks , but these were not what I was looking for. I pushed my hand further back, and found my desired items, a condom packet and a bottle of lubricant. Great now what? It's not like I can push them into his face and say 'you know what to do.' Urgh this is going to be hard, but I have to make him feel wanted and thanked.

I placed them on the locker on my side of the bed and returned to the living room, seeing the back of Jack's head as I entered, he was eating cereal for some reason. Well, it is nearly morning, so I guess that could be classed as breakfast.

I stood directly behind him, feeling entirely awkward, as if I was some sort of creep that was going to jump him. I performed Jack's habit of opening and closing my mouth, each time thinking of a new cheesy thing to say, but they were seriously far too cheesy to actually utter aloud. Oh forget it, I'm not a seducer by nature, I'll just do this the simple and quick way.

I walked to the front of the sofa and sat close to Jack, our thighs touching, which in itself drew his gaze downwards. I leant on my knee as he finished his mouthful, not wanting to speak while I didn't have his full attention.

"Um, Jack, I'm not entirely sure how to do this but," I paused and rubbed my right arm with my left, the boy in front of me giving me a curious look, "I wanted to thank you for everything you've done for me, not just tonight, but everything."

He raised an eyebrow at me, "Um, you're welcome, why would that be har-"

But he never finished his sentence as I lightly placed a kiss on his lips, my eyes slammed shut in uncertainty, I have never done anything like this, it's so out of character. But then again, ever since I met Jack I've been acting differently.

I peeled one eye open, seeing that Jack had wide eyes, and his eyebrows raised towards the roof. I instantly reversed, my face more red than a beet.

"S-sorry, I wanted to do something to thank you and show you that I wanted to be with you too." I whispered, my voice weak and frail. I thought he would be happy that I took the initiative.

Then, just when I felt my shame build to its peak, I felt a hand drag my face to look back over at him.

"Hiccup, I love you more than you'll ever know." He whispered back exuberantly.

Just when I was about to reply in confusion, he lifted his body up and onto mine, placing his lips onto mine again.

He was not as forceful as the other times, this time being much more sensual and slow moving. He brushed his lips lightly over mine as we laid down, my back to the sofa with Jack supporting himself above me with one hand, the other on my face. I opened my mouth slowly, but this time, my tongue was the first to emerge from its hiding place, slipping into the other mouth which gave out a low moan in response.

I moved my hands so that one was in Jack's hair and the other was under his hoodie, stroking his stomach up and down, giving him shivers. He then moved his thumb along my face, stroking it in time with our slow, emotional kisses. I preferred this to the other times, I felt safer, like I had more control over the situation, not that the others weren't nice, it's just that this is better for me.

I felt the hand on my face slide down my body as my tongue explored Jack's upper set of teeth, stopping when it arrived at the hem of my trousers. My eyes darted downwards, watching as Jack fumbled with the button, laughing quietly when he gave a small growl of frustration, it was rather cute to me. I better help him out before the whole mood changes.

I released my hand from his hair and retracted my other from under his hoodie, directing them towards the troublesome button and undoing it myself, earning me a thankful smile from Jack. He pulled away from the kiss and slowly slid the article off, me having to lift my hips to help him out. He stared at me, sitting there in my white boxers, a grin slowly growing on his face.

"Now you," I said huskily, out of breath from all the kissing.

He went to undo his trousers himself, but I beat him there, slowly unzipping the clothing as the button popped undone. I hooked my finger over the top, and dragged it down, accidently taking down his pants too, making me appear to be more eager than I actually was. He gasped quietly as he was exposed to the cool air around us, twitching a few times.

I looked him in the eye as I sat up straight, forcing him to do the same. Sitting on my knees, I kissed him and placed one hand on his bare thigh, before getting up and walking towards the bedroom. He seemed to be confused and disappointed, at least until I motioned for him to follow.

"Are you coming, Jack?"

**I would right the smutty part, but my mum has decided to randomly join me, so I can't. Also I partly don't want this to become just about smut, but if demand is great enough, I will add it tomorrow. :3**


	18. Optional Smut for those who want it

**Okay, as I recieved mixed reactions about the submition of smut, I decided to put it as a seperate mini chapter so that people who want to read it can, and those who don't can skip without it affecting the clarity of the plot. :)**

He scrambled off the sofa with haste, tripping over his own limbs as he scurried after me. I lead him by the wrist to the bed, and sat him down next to me, planting yet another soft kiss on his lips and one on his cheek. Out of the corner of my eyes i saw his flit to my locker, noticing the items that I had placed there, his eyes shining with recognition at what i had intended for him tonight.

He pushed me down lightyl onto the bed as he stripped himself of his hoodie, I too taking off my top, both of us throwing them in opposite corners of the room. I watched as he looked me up and down, as if he was counting every freckle on my spotted chest, as if he had never seen it before. Maybe it was just my imagination, but he too seemed to be enjoying this more than the other times.

He leaned down and gave me a long, slow kiss before backing up, "Ready?"

"Yeah, I'm ready."

I lifted up my legs as he grabbed the bottle from the side, squeezing out the contents and spreading it around my entrance, poking in one finger and fiddling around, then another and repeated the action until he had perfromed it with three fingers simultaneously. When he had withdrawn them, my breathing had become heavier as tears started to well up in the corners of my eyes. I watched Jack's lustful stare as he slowly placed the condom over his erect member, yet again spreading more lubrication over it.

He positioned himself in position, looking at me as his shoulders kept my legs out of the way.

"Okay, okay, okay," he said, seeming more like he was preparing himself more than me.

He slowly dipped his hips as he entered me, my breathing becoming strained and I began making high pitched noises. The tears began to fall, but they were so small that Jack didn't notice in the dark. I could feel his heated breath upon my face, which was now flushed red and coated lightly with sweat. His breathing was becoming heavier and the frequency of his moaning was increasing as time went on, it was highly arousing.

I craned my neck up and meshed our tongues together as he began to thrust faster, the bed creaking at one point. The kiss was unco-ordinated, but not entirely messy, as no saliva leaked down our chins, instead just mixing together in our mouths, making our taste buds explode with the new sensation. I reached my arm out to the side and gripped the sheets as Jack gave a particularly long and slow thrust, hitting my prostate.

"Oh, ah!" I let out involuntarily.

He just laughed in return, and continued to hit that same spot, sending multiple waves of pleasure throughout my body.

He began to move faster as he moved his hand to pump my member, both of us now moaning for the same reason at the same time. It was a completely new experience when he timed his pumping and thrusting together, making me practiacally mew from the feeling. He wiped some sweat off his brow with his shoulder as his moaning became louder and louder, increasing the pace of both his thrusting and pumping simultaneously.

I felt something in my lower body, a feeling like something very pleasurable was about to surge throughout my body, and completely envelope me in it entirely. My body twitched and shifted undeneath him as he arched his back, giving out still louder moans. My back also arched as i ejeculated over both our stomachs as Jack finished inside me, both of us giving out one final loud moan in unison.

After finishing, Jack collapsed next to me and stared into my eyes, "Good for you?"

I laughed at how blunt he was, "Perfect," I whispered tiredly as I kissed his forehead, drifting of to sleep.


	19. Hospital

**Please! I am beggin you for help on how to lengthen the conversation between Hiccup and his Dad without filling it with useless, badly timed crap that I keep thinking of! D:D:D:D:D:D:D:D:D:D:D:D:D:D:**

I awoke late the next morning to the sound of Jack snoring loudly and a hand suddenly landing upon my bare back, which was not the ideal start to a Saturday. The corner of his mouth twitched as he released another loud snore, making him look slightly animalistic, but I didn't mind. I rubbed the area of impact, turning my gaze from him. I yawned loudly and slowly swung my legs out of the bed in an inelegant manner, surprising me that I didn't have any pains in my lower back this morning, every other time I have, maybe this is because my luck is finally taking a turn for the better. That sure put a small smile on my face.

I stood and arched my back, groaning as I did so, after all, the excitement from yesterday really took a toll on my body as well as my mind. I looked around the dimly lit room, seeing our clothes strewn all over the place, one article even going as far as landing out the door way of the room, the very end creeping into the living room.

I straightened one leg out, and immediately found myself falling backwards onto my butt, my arms flailing about in the air dramatically as I tried to grab an imaginary object to save me. My hair waved about above my head as I let out a sudden, high pitched shriek in surprise. Was I wrong in thinking that I was at my usual pathetic strength and my legs give way again, or am I tripping over my own feet again?

I landed with a hard thump on the floor, my bottom and lower back now hurting more than any other occasion as I landed on my coccyx. Pinching the bridge of my nose, I looked at where I had been standing, and saw that I had tripped on an open bottle of lubricant, that had been carelessly tossed to the floor. So much for my luck taking a turn for the better at long last.

After staring at the bottle for a while, my eyes following the stream of lubricant that had squirted across the floor ,I got back up. However, this time I was much sorer, but I still kindly checked that I hadn't woken Jack up. Not that I really thought I did, he is a deep sleeper, and always will be. At the sight of him still snoring, and drooling onto the pillow a little, I limped over to the wardrobe, and pulled out my green dressing gown, putting it on and fastening around my waist, then leaving to get some food for breakfast.

I stood there, leaning on the kitchen counter, shovelling cereal into my mouth when Jack emerged from the bedroom.

"Morning," he mumbled as he scratched a spot on his back, eyes closed in concentration, "Hey, why aren't you sitting down?"

I squirmed uncomfortably, not wanting to admit the real reason why, also wondering how he hadn't seen the mess on the floor.

I looked to my cereal, then flitted my eyes back up, his face lightening up for some reason.

"Oh, I get it, you're uh.. sore?"

I stopped chewing, deciding whether this was a better choice than the real reason, "A bit, yeah."

"Sorry, I'll try to be more gentle next time."  
Hmm, that probably won't make any difference.

After we had both finished our breakfast, I awkwardly placed myself down onto the sofa, having to get into an unnatural position to achieve some sort of comfort. Then, as if to rub it in, Jack practically ran and jumped butt first onto the sofa, the show off.

He slid a bit closer to me, putting a hand on my knee, "So, when do you want to go and see your Dad?"

Crap. Oh god, I forgot that now he's been found I'd actually have to deal with all the problems that have happened. It was all very well me saying that I wanted to get it sorted out, but the prospect actually doing it was terrifying.

I swallowed a hard lump in my throat as I attempted to construct an answer, "Uh, um, erm," good answer Hiccup.

He squeezed my knee reassuringly, "It doesn't have to be today if you don't want it to be, we can go whenever."

I shook my head violently, "No! No, I want to do it today, but... I'm scared about what will happen."

"Well of course you would be, anyone would."

"Hmm, I'm sure some people wouldn't be."  
"No, believe me, they really are scared. They just hide it well," he said with a shrug, as if he was one of these people.

I took a deep breath in, thinking of the best time to get this done. The earlier I go, the earlier I get it done and I won't spend the whole day worrying, but if I leave it till later then Dad will be more sedate and tired, and I'll have time to prepare myself. I placed a finger on my chin, deciding that the former was probably the best option.

"Can we go in an hour?"  
"Sure, if we get ready now we can."

Oh god, Oh god, Oh god, Oh god! I was freaking out as I paced the hospital waiting room up and down, the receptionist and other guests giving me worried looks, perhaps they thought I was waiting for someone who was having major surgery. Then again, I don't know what's happened, Dad could've had major surgery and I'll just aggravate him and we'll never settle this!  
My attention was caught by the white haired boy was staring up at the ceiling, occasionally spitting out his bubblegum only to catch it in his mouth and blow air into it. He looked bored as hell, well we had been here for two hours already, but still.

"Jack, how can you be so calm?"  
His head snapped to look at me as the gum fell to the floor behind his chair, "Huh?

Wow, he must be really out of it, "I asked how you can be so calm?"  
"Well, it's not that I'm not worried, but, it's just that I know there's nothing I can do to help. This is all you and your Dad."

Oh god, he's right! I have nobody to back me up in this, I have to deal with it alone! I pulled at a strand of hair by my ear, fingering it as my gaze grew frantic.

"Hmm, I'm guessing that didn't help, huh?"  
"No shit."

I passed more time passing, speeding up whenever a nurse or doctor came anywhere near to me, anticipating that they would call me in. I swear that I was going to wear a hole in the floor, surprised I hadn't done so already. I paced up and down continuously until I was out of breath, having to have Jack force me to lie down on his lap. The position earned us some nasty stares from two of the men in the room, but the rest didn't care, while a group of girls looked as if they were about to squeal out loud.

As soon as my eyes began to relax their gaze, I heard the door slowly open, but no footsteps followed it, meaning someone was looking for somebody else.

"Hiccup? Your Dad is ready to see you now." My eyes shot wide, almost popping out their sockets.

I leapt off Jack's lap, or at least tried to as we clashed foreheads. Hmm, haven't done that for a while.

I briefly held my head before checking if he was okay.

"Fine, fine, just go make up with Daddy," he shooed me away as he rubbed the reddened spot, not watching as I walked trembling towards the young doctor in the doorway.

He led me down three endless, sterile corridors, all coloured a pasty white and smelling like a swimming pool that had used way too much chlorine. After many failed attempts, I finally could see inside one of the miniature rooms, noticing that they tried to recreate the atmosphere of a normal home environment, but the overall atmosphere completely shattered that illusion. The bed was lined with a metal bar and the constantly beeping pieces of equipment were certainly very annoying. As well as the wires and lights they had everywhere, they were definitely a big factor.

I studied the doctor's face as he turned around abruptly at a randomly selected door, I figured this was the one that held my Dad. He had faint bags under his eyes, but no other visible blemishes or wrinkles on his tanned skin. He looked too young to be an experienced doctor, he could only be twenty seven, twenty eight at most. He was still rocking the surfer look, his golden blond hair pushed over to one side of his head, a few spike covering his fringe. If he was employed at such a major surgery at such a young age, he must be very good at his profession.

"Right then sir, your father is in this room, awaiting your arrival." He sounded thoroughly uninterested as well as extremely tired. The bags under his eyes seemed to scream out for sleep, yearning for it with their every fibre of their being.

"Just so you know, we do not recommend prolonged periods of you touching him as he is quite grouchy and seems to be feeling sensitive. If you must have physical interaction, keep it brief." Okay, that last part sounded a bit weird. And a grouchy father, joy, although it did make me laugh how he was being described as akin to a Prima Donna.

He was just about to leave before I stopped him, reaching out quickly.

"Yes, what is it now sir?"  
I hesitated, not knowing if he was allowed to answer my questions, "Has he under gone any surgery? Is there anything wrong with him?"

He stared blankly at me for a short time, making me feel as if he would not answer me, but for what reason would he do that? I am family, so I have a right to know about this.

His green eyes flitted towards the door, staring intently, "Well, he is malnourished and was very dehydrated when he arrived, but that is easily rectified, all that needs is constant attention and aid to... keep everything down."  
I let out a sigh of relief as he flicked through his notes, "However," my body went rigid once more, "He does have an infection on a cut on his left foot, and another on his right elbow, most likely just from getting dirt in them, but because of the long period that they went untreated they have become quite sore looking. We have prescribed medicine, but we may need to operate if the symptoms persist. I also don't recommend touching those areas."

Great, well, at least it was manageable right now. He seemed to sense my worry and attempted to comfort me, handing me a lollipop that he had in his pocket, most likely for any younger visitors.

"I'm not good at comforting people, so take that, it seems to work with the children. And if you have any problems, please call for Doctor Jackson, and I'll come as soon as the situation allows."  
I smiled thankfully as he walked off down the corridor, stopping when he got half way down the hall, "You have one hour before you will be asked to leave the premises."

Then he left without another word.

He stalked off, flipping through his vast amount of notes, mumbling something about a traffic accident, and if he'd ever get to go home to his girlfriend, disappearing round the corner. I waited until he turned round the corner, then prepared myself, placing a quivering hand on the doors sickly white surface. Come on now Hiccup, now's not the time for fear. Huh, yeah who am I kidding? I've been freaking out for the past god knows how long. Swallowing loudly, I slowly pushed open the door and entered the room.

There he was, sitting in his bed looking sternly out the window with his arms crossed, as if he was a sulking child. He had various amounts of coloured wires coming out of his arm and the heart monitor which was attached to his thumb filled the air with a steady, constant beeping noise. I imagined that had gotten way past annoying for him. The open window out of which he looked allowed for sunlight to flood in, or at least it would if today was not overcast and drizzling, the rain forming small droplets on the window, which were locked in a brief race against each other.

I noticed a small plate with a cup by it, covered in crumbs while the cup had tea stains. At least that meant he had eaten, or rather from the smell of cleaning supplies in the room, he had attempted to eat, even if he had not managed to keep it down. His hair and beard were now clean, looking their usual fullness, but had been trimmed at the ends, something I imagined he was not overly happy about at all. Over all, he did not look at all pleased to be here in any shape or form.

He had yet to notice my presence, too deeply immersed in his gazing off into the distance, no doubt wishing to be somewhere, anywhere else but here. Well, here goes nothing.

I gave out a timid noise to gain his attention, dreading what his reaction would be when he saw me, "Ahem."

His head perked up as he heard the noise, sighing gruffly he turned to me, "I told you for the last time I'm fine, I don't need-"

But he stopped as soon as he turned and looked upon me, his eyes widening and then filling with regret and sorrow.

I took a small step forward, "Hey, um, Dad," this was five times more tense then I had imagined.

"Hello, erm, Hiccup, son." My ear pricked at that, he called me by my name, but he hasn't called me that since before the argument.

"H-how are you feeling?"

"Well, I feel fine, but these idiot doctors seem to think that I'm in need of constant care," he gave a pitiful laugh, "They even wanted to keep me here for the whole month!"

He lifted up his arm and I saw the injury on his elbow, noticing it was enflamed and very clearly infected. How did he not see that it needed to be treated by professionals.

The beeping of the heart monitor yet again became the dominant sound in the room as I took a seat by his bed. We would make eye contact every so often, but then one of us would turn away, closing our eyes painfully. What exactly could I say in this situation?

Apparently, I didn't need to say anything, "Son," I turned and looked into his eye, "I am not quite sure how to say this, as this is not in my nature, but I have said something's that I regret. Miss Roberts has helped me see that.

I stayed quiet as he collected himself, not wanting to interrupt his train of thought, "I, uh, I don't blame you for, um, what happened to your mother, it was just me trying to cope with the loss of her, finding blame to place on someone where there wasn't anyone to blame."

He laughed bitterly at himself, I swear I could see tears in his eyes, "You were just an innocent, oblivious young boy, and yet I blamed you, and made you believe you were a cold-blooded murderer. I then ignored you for a week and let you fester in your own nightmares and hatred in that room of yours, never checking if you were still alive or not.

I cringed at the mention of nightmares, I twiddled the lollipop in my hands while wondering how much Sandra told him, but he didn't seem to react or even notice.

"I suppose the whole point of this is to say that... um... well, that I am... what I am trying to say is that... I'm sorry son, truly, for everything. For making you feel guilty, for out-casting you, and for treating you like a stranger in your own home."

My world seemed to stop around me, he actually said sorry, and I didn't even say anything yet. This seemed too easy, too simple, as if something was bound to mess it all up, but I could think of nothing that could. I felt a lump in my throat swell to the size of a watermelon, hearing that it wasn't my fault from everyone else was all well and good, but Dad was the only one whose words really mattered on this subject.

Now, in any normal family, this is where we would have a family hug and cry out all our emotions together, but we aren't a normal family. Even after this touching moment, Dad and I are still not close enough to comfortably hug one another, so I settled for placing my small hand on top of his paw like ones.

"It's okay Dad, you don't need to apologize," I lied, I did want him to, but I couldn't exactly say that could I?

He looked down at our touching hands with a solemn smile on his face, staring at them for a while. His pupils dilated at the sight, and his eyelids lowered ever so slightly, making me believe that he was pleased at the contact, which I have never given him in the past. Because of this, I imagined that to him this was just as good as any hug could be, and yet, I still felt like he did not truly feel as if he had redeemed in himself, whether that was in his own eyes or mine I didn't know.

I took my hand away and we both sat there quietly, though now it was not as awkward. Don't misunderstand, it was still awkward, just not as much, there was a minute improvement to our situation.

"I tried to tell you on the phone, but some person bumped into me, calling me a dirty hobo, and that I should get away from civilisation. The bump caused me to drop my phone, and it got water inside it, so I suppose that slowly broke it over time."

That explained why I only managed to hear sections of his speech.

"Heh, it's just as well you heard me say where I was, or else I might be much worse off than I am now!"

That's not something to joke about you know, it could've really happened.

We didn't speak for a long while, he just continued to look out the window and I looked around the room. I counted the ceiling tiles, of which there were seventy two and the floor tiles, finding that there were thirty six in total. Eventually I left, as I felt that there was no point to me being here any longer, and that there was nothing else I could comfortably do as of yet. Maybe as time goes one this whole thing will will get easier.

I made my own way back to the stale waiting room, but I seemed to not completely remember the way at first, going into an old woman's room, and empty operating theatre, a toilet and a janitor's cupboard before I eventually found my way back. Seriously though, why are there not signs in this place? An elderly person or young child could get lost forever in here. What's worse than that is that I was longer walking about than I was visiting my Dad, that's really not very good at all, it says nothing for my sense of direction.

I walked back over to where Jack was sat, lying on a leather sofa asleep with one of the tassels of his hoodie in between his teeth. He looked like a little child. I knelt down next to him and poked his forehead with my finger, causing him to roll violently of the seat and fall to the floor with a loud thud.

"Hey, I'm done now, we can go."  
"Aren't you going to say sorry? That hurt," he whined as he clambered to his feet.

When he got level with me I gave his arm a quick rub, my brilliant comforting coming to play again, "Sorry about that, but considered it payback for this morning."

"What happened his morning?" He looked curious, obviously wondering what I was on about, but he quickly dropped it "So, tell me, how'd it go?"

I kicked one foot back and forth, not looking him in the eye, "Well, he said he doesn't blame me anymore."  
His eyes lit up excitedly, "That's great! What else?"

I bit my lip, "We didn't say anything else, I stayed quiet and then left on my own."

He looked a bit disappointed at this, "Really, you said nothing else, not a word? I thought this would be a great time to make up your differences?"  
"Well, there's a lot to cover, it's the first day and he's in hospital. If I rush anything it could do more harm than good." I needed to go at Dad's pace, he was a very proud person, if I did anything that he really disagreed with, this would become twice as hard.

He sighed and stuck his hands in his pockets, shrugging his shoulders, "Okay, okay, I suppose you're right."

"So, when are you going to tell him about us then?"  
I sighed, "Really Jack, after what I just told you, you want me to tell my Dad about us?"

"Yes, the sooner the better!" He cried with an idiotic smile, he had obviously never had to worry about this sort of thing before, making me almost envious of him.

I handed him my lollipop as we walked back to the car, when I heard Jack make a strange noise, "Something wrong?"

"Well, if you left the room early, why did it take you to get back." He stuck the sweet in his mouth and began to suck the top loudly.  
"Never mind why."  
He stopped walking and grinned, pointing his sweet at me, "You got lost didn't you?"

"I said never mind."  
"You got lost."


	20. Jack's Parents

**This chapter is actually based off a real thing that happened to my cousin and his boyfriend. Of course I improvised on some bits as he wouldn't tell me everything, but I imagine it was similar to this XD**

**Also, thank you to captaintahno for the new image for this story, I love it!**

Well, I would like to say that the rest of the day went by peacefully, but unfortunately it did not. We were currently stuck in a traffic jam, and had been for the past two hours.

"Oh god!" Cried Jack, "It would be quicker if we just walked!"

I laughed as he slammed his head on the steering wheel, instantly regretting it, "If we walked then we'd never be able to get the car home. And as soon as we started the congestion would probably begin to ease out."

He leaned back in his seat, staring at the grey ceiling, "Yeah, you're right. But I'm still really tempted to drive on the path or something, anything, to get out of this."

I sat there and stared out the window, watching an old lady slowly pass us in those things that old people always ride around in. Seriously, when would this damn traffic start moving? If an old lady can pass us, then there is just no hope for anything in life, a snail might as well have sped past on a tortoise that had no legs.

My vision focused again on the people playing in the field opposite us, seeing that there were various families out on a daily trip, all looking as if they were having fun and enjoying each other's company, lucky them. I watched as a father lifted his son into the air, pretending that he was an airplane or some sort of air transportation. I found myself wondering what it was like to have your Dad do that, realising the time for that to happen to me was long gone.

I moved my eyes away from the display, scanning the rest of the field as the car moved forward about half an inch. My eyes caught onto the back of a black clad boy and a girl I presumed was his girl friend, they didn't look at all happy, arguing and shouting loudly. People who were walking past them were giving them worried, as well as annoyed, looks, but I felt it was mostly for the girls sake.

I couldn't see either of their faces, the girl was facing away from me and the boy was wearing a hoodie, but they seemed familiar, but I knew nobody who acted like that towards each other. My interest grew as the girl began to stick up for herself more, pointing an angry finger at the person in front of her, who looked taken aback by her sudden burst of rage. Hmph, if there's one thing everyone knows it's that you should never upset a quiet person; they have the absolute worst tempers, and can unleash it in sudden, fiery bursts.

I rested my head on my hand, watching intently. The boy seemed to be growing more and more frustrated with her, giving me a rather foreboding feeling. Which turned out to be truly justified, as when the girl turned to walk away, he grabbed her wrist and slapped her forcefully in the face. My eyes grew from shock, I expected him to retaliate, but not with violence. Then again, who am I to talk? I did head butt a girl square in the face, but she was a bitch. Well, that still doesn't make it right.

"Right, that's it! We are taking the long way home!" I heard Jack yell out, looking round to see him rapidly turn the wheel to lead us down a side road that he had barely come level with. I looked back, trying to see the rest of the situation, but houses soon blocked my view. I wonder who they were. Oh well, it's not like I'm ever going to see them again, or have anything to do with them if I did happen to come across them in the future.

The road that we went down was surprisingly quaint. Many luxuriously grandiose houses were lined up either side of the road, each being separated from each other by an extremely wide back garden. I ogled each and every house, but Jack seemed more interested in the various cars scattered on every drive way. This whole road was like it had come straight out of an American film, the road lined with green trees with sections of grass surrounding them. It looked very upper class indeed.

"Oh my god! They have a Bugatti Veyron, and a Cadillac Eldorado! They stopped those in two thousand and two!" as Jack wiggled in his seat excitedly, having no idea what house he was talking about; cars were never my area of expertise. As long as it can get me where I want to go, who cares what type it is?

"I'm guessing that's impressive then?"

"Huh, yeah! These people must be millionaires or something! I didn't know that people like this lived so near us."

Hm, neither did I actually, and I've lived here all my life. Boy, that was a depressing thought.

It took another hour, but we eventually arrived back home, our stomachs both growling relentlessly from hunger.

"I swear to you, I will buy one of those houses for us one day! And that will be us with all the fancy cars," Jack declared confidently as we entered the flat.

"Mhmm, and how are you going to do that?"

"Um, I'll become some ridiculously well paid person who does absolutely nothing all day!"

Yeah because that will work, I know for a fact that Jack is awful at singing, and is too tweedy for any major sports.

"Huh, and what would you do exactly?"

He threw himself down on the sofa, thinking hard about it, "I could become a YouTube celebrity, and then work my way up the social ranks from there!"

The thought of Jack making videos that get millions of views actually seemed plausible to me, but I just knew that they would mostly be of him pranking me.

He wiggled his eyes suggestively, "Or, you know, we could both become adult entertainers together."

"No."

A few hours later I was watching Jack play some incredibly violent game on the television, watching as he tried to find new ways of killing zombies, talking to his online friends about what they could do next.

"No, if they all chase the pipe bomb they won't go after the boomer bile!"

I picked up the case, wondering what the hell boomer bile was. Hmm Left for Dead Two? Never heard of it in my life, but it looked like a good way to relieve stress.

"Well, maybe I don't want to teabag a Spitter, have you ever thought about that?"

Okay, I may not be a gamer, but I know what tea bagging is, and that was just gross.

I continued to watch him blast the undead creature's brains out as my mind wondered elsewhere, back to my Dad, mostly those infected cuts and what to do next. I know for a fact that he won't stay on the prescribed medication for much longer, as soon as he feels that they aren't working he'll stop in a heartbeat, never voluntarily taking them again. He might even resort to picking at the wounds himself to get the infection out and make it worse. The thought of what the injuries could look like began to make me feel sick to my stomach, forcing me to get a drink.

I signalled to Jack if he wanted one, but he just shook his head, his headset wobbling slightly.

Walking over to the tap, I grabbed a glass and began to fill it with water, watching the liquid churn and swish around as I thought about what I could do next with my Dad. He had already apologised, so that was out of the way, although it's obvious that only time will completely eradicate his guilt. So what now? Am I supposed to try and open up more to him? But that would mean telling him about Jack and I, and I want to leave that for as long as possible. It's not that I'm ashamed or embarrassed, but I want to know that Dad will react calmly, as well as also properly meet Jack first.

Oh, that was going to go so swimmingly! I could just imagine him blurting out something that would make my Dad thoroughly uncomfortable, such as what my hair smells like or something like that. Urgh, I may not being looking forward to their first meeting, but it's something that needs to be done, and soon the better I suppose. I gulped the glass down in one large mouthful and returned to the sofa, seeing that Jack had just finished his level on the game.

"Okay, see you later than, bye." He looked a little down trodden that he had no-one to play with. Oh well, here goes nothing.

I set myself on the floor beside him, crossing my legs as if I was in infant school again. He took no notice of me at first, starting to close the game down.

He got to the main menu when I stopped him, grabbing the second controller, "So, um, how do you play this then?"

He raised his eyebrows at me, surprised that I had actually taken an interest in such a thing. To be honest, the game looked completely pointless to me, but Jack liked it enough, so that was a good enough reason in and of itself.

"Hmm, well the left stick is to move about and the right one controls your camera, but it's easier just to move the left forward and wiggle the right. This trigger is to shoot, this button reloads the gun, and this one jumps. Oh, and that one picks things up."

He pointed to various coloured buttons as he talked, but the information was not really sticking in my brain.

He began the game, telling me how to choose a character, but other than their appearance, they were all identical. To me that meant there was no point in choosing then, so I chose to randomise my character, ending up as someone called Rochelle, while he played as someone called Ellis. The names at present meant less than nothing to me, but Jack seemed to find my character rather funny for some reason unbeknownst to me.

The scene opened with a sweeping shot of the top of a hotel, with four people on a roof just missing an evacuation helicopter. They began spewing various profanities when the pilot did not turn back for them. The side of the screen that was dedicated for my character went into her view point, and I immediately felt lost already, not knowing what I was meant to be doing, instead watching Jack's character head straight for a table with various weapons on top of it.

I decided it was best to just follow by example, letting Jack lead would probably be the best thing right now. I walked over to said table and looked at all the weapons, including an axe, crowbar, shotgun and pistols.

"Um, Jack? What's the difference between these?"  
"Hm, well, the axe has the farthest reach of melee weapons, but if you get that you can't have two pistols. The shotgun acts like a shotgun would, and pistols have infinite ammo. I usually choose the pistols in case a Boomer comes along."

"Boomer?"

"Oh, yeah. A Boomer is a really fat zombie that vomits all over you, and when it's killed you're covered as well. That stuff then attracts a horde of infected to you, so it's best not to get covered at any cost."  
Urgh, this already sounded to complicated for me, oh well, I'll just shoot everything that moves. That what Jack seemed to do earlier.

I grabbed a second pistol and followed Jack down a flight of stairs, coming out in a hallway scattered with infected.

"So, basically, just shoot everything?"

"Yeah, pretty much," he declared with a grin on his face, looking as if he took pleasure in this.

"Okay then."

I aimed up my crosshair thingy and shot, hitting a zombie square in the head. I felt rather proud of myself and walked up to it, expecting it to fall down dead. Unfortunately for me it crouched and leaped onto me, ripping at my characters torso in a flurry of snarls and growls.

"Um Jack? What the hell, do they all do this?"  
He looked over to my screen, seemingly a bit surprised, "Oh, a hunter already? Usually they don't pop up until later. When they stand normally they're silent and look like normal infected, but they can crouch and leap on you, but their noisy when they do that."

He rushed over and shot it square in the back of the head, the ragdoll like body flying away from me.

I continued to move my character down a few corridors, shooting poorly as I went, apparently my earlier head shot was a fluke. I came out onto a window ledge, and then I heard a strange squawking sound, and there was green slime on the floor.

"Is that a Boomer?" I asked, leaning over slightly.

"Nope, that's a Spitter, they spit corrosive acid at you, and turn into an acid puddle when they die.

There were way too many types of zombies in this game.

Sure enough, we came upon the aforementioned monstrosity, and Jack proceeded to hit it in the face with his gun. I looked over its body, noticing that its lower jaw and been corroded, and that it had incredibly saggy breasts.

When Jack finally shot it, he looked over at me and smiled, "You in love with it or something?"  
"Huh, yeah, because she was such a beauty."

"Beauty is only skin deep."  
"She hardly has any skin in the first place."

Time went on and I learnt the further I played through the levels, finding that I preferred the pistols to melee weapons, and machine guns to shotguns. I just hope that there were no more zombie types.

But apparently there were, for as soon as I began the second level, I was instantly charged by some hulking monster. Honestly it made me jump a little, especially the howling sound it made.

"Let me guess, this thing is called a charger?"  
"Yeah, how's you guess?"  
"Well, they all have such original names."

"Hey, can you guess what he spends all his time doing?"

I looked over the creature, straight away finding what Jack was referring to.

One arm was massive, an impressive display of hulking muscle.

I decided to tease him for earlier, "Heh, you would have looked like that soon if you hadn't met me."  
He shot another zombie in the face, "yeah, probably would have!"  
You aren't supposed to agree with me. _**(Yes, I did just try to make a masturbation joke, but that really**_** happened!)**

We played for another hour or two, finishing three campaigns in that time. I improved greatly from when I started, but was nowhere near as good as Jack, although on one level I did manage to kill more zombies than him, but that was only because I accidently pushed him off a cliff. He took it rather well, I imagined him getting angry like some gamers that I had saw, but he just scream happily as his character fell, making a splat noise as he landed on the spiky rocks below.

Although my original intention was only to play as I knew it would make Jack happy I ended up having more fun than I thought I would. Who knew that blasting the brains out of the undead would help you release built up frustration and worry? Actually, know that I think about it, everyone probably knew that anyway. Regardless, I wouldn't mind playing that again sometime in the future.

I was about to make something for lunch when Jack's home phone randomly rang violently. I looked around for him, but he was nowhere, probably in the bathroom. Oh well, I'll answer it for him.

"Hello, this is Jack's phone, Hiccup speaking."

There was no reply, but I heard a woman talking in the distant background, moaning to someone about a door not opening.

"Oh, he's picked up now," I heard, "Jackie! It's your dear mother! Lets us in won't you, we keep knocking on the door, but no one's answering!"

I kept trying to say that I wasn't her son, and that you need to ring, not knock, to enter an apartment complex, but she wouldn't be quiet. I pressed the button to let her in as Jack came out the toilet, mouthing to me who was on the phone. When I replied, he seemed to suddenly get frantic.

Grabbing the phone out my hand, he hurriedly replied, "Hey mom! What brings you here?"  
He turned and whispered for me not to let her in.

Too late.

I could only hear muffled voices on the other end, along with Jack feebly trying to object, but his mother was seemingly having none of it. Before long I could hear her on the other side of the door, allowing me to fill both sides of the conversation.

"But Jack, you have to let us come in! We have to meet your darling boyfriend, and we're already outside the door!"

He turned to me, annoyed that I had let them in. I thought he liked his parents? Sighing, he put the phone down and opened the door widely, letting me see the two other people who he so desperately wanted to keep out. I looked upon the two brunet people in front of me, seeing that the Dad greatly resembled his son, although he had a bit of a stronger jaw line, and his shoulders were broader. His eyes sparkled that same shade of sapphire blue that I had come to know. He was just standing there, giving the both of us a curt nod of his head.

Then there was his mother, a tall, slim woman, from who Jack definitely inherited his bone structure. Her hair was the same colour as her husband's, but her eyes were a dark shade of brown, with flecks of green. She had a phone clutched to her breast, and a hand on her hips, smiling brightly at the both of us.

"Jack!" She cried, walking straight in, "I see you haven't killed yourself doing some stupid stunt yet."

Her husband walked past his son, giving him a pat on the arm, but then joining his wife in advancing towards me slowly. I felt like they were going to devour me.

The husband towered over me, but the wife wasn't that much taller than me, probably an inch at most, making me feel taller than I usually do.

"So, you're the one that's caught my darling son's heart are you?" She placed her hands on both sides of my face, "Let me get a good look at you!"

Over her shoulder I could see Jack hitting his face with his hand, making his Dad chuckle lowly.

"Yes, you're certainly very cute! And from what I hear, a very good lover too!"  
I blushed deeply, what has Jack told her?  
Seemingly noticing my shame, she quickly explained, "Oh, wrong words, I mean as in your a reliable partner!"

Oh, well that was a better way of putting it.

"Um, well thank you, my names Hiccup, but I guess you already knew that."

They both grinned at me, but didn't reply with their own names. Slightly rude.

As Jack's mother walked over to the sofa, his Dad just stared at me, making me uncomfortable.

"Hello?"

He grinned, "You're a skinny little thing aren't you?" He placed his paw like hand on my head, ruffling my hair, "You need to come to a family barbeque, put some meat on your bones!"

The touch was warm, and felt safe. I wonder if this was how a father was meant to feel, like a protector?

"Heh, yeah. Sounds like fun."

He gave a satisfied grunt and walked over to join his wife on the sofa, talking about how the flat hadn't changed since the last time they were here. At the first chance he got, I dragged by Jack into the bedroom.

"Oh god! Why are they here now!" he lamented, throwing his hands in the air dramatically.

"What? I thought you liked your parents?"

He slouched childishly, "I do, but when they come here it means they plan to stay for ages, last time they stayed for five days straight."

Oh, I don't think I can last five days of such touchy-feely people.

"Okay, but it's not like you can do anything about it, they're your parents after all, they just want to look after you."  
He laughed quietly so as to not attract attention, "No, parents want to protect, these people want to wrap me in bubble wrap and lock me in a cushion padded room!"

Hmm, sometimes I feel like you might be in need of that myself.

We walked back out to the other two, who were both staring at us intently. Jack sat on the floor, meaning I had to sit between the two of them. Most awkward thing ever.  
"So then, how long have you been living here then Hiccup?"  
Wow, already down to the questions, "Oh, hmm about three or four weeks now."

"Wow, that's quite a while, have you moved in officially?"

I thought about it, realising that Toothless was the only thing that I had actually brought here, I bought new clothes instead of going back to my house.

"No, and soon I might have to go back to my house to take care of my Dad."  
She raised her eyebrows, "He's ill?"  
This woman is getting a bit nosy for my liking, but what can I say?  
"Yes, and he's injured himself a bit, he's at the hospital at the moment."

My eyes flicked to Jack, catching his, and widening pleadingly all in the space of a second.

He seemed to get the hint, "So, Dad, how's the lawyer thing going for you?"  
Hmm, I never knew that his Dad was a lawyer.

The man stretched, leaning back over the sofa. I could see his muscles through his top, they were quite impressive.

He returned to his normal position, "Well, I'm locked in an important case at the moment, which is obviously confidential, but I can tell you that I'm confident that I'm going to win it."

"Huh, just like you won the last one?"  
He grumbled lowly, "That was a fluke, I didn't know that someone could hide a gun up there."

God, I don't even want to know where he meant.

The woman next to me burst out laughing, "I remember that, he spent a week trying to find out if it was actually possible!"  
Please tell me he didn't try and hide a gun where I think they're talking about.

All three of them laughed around me while I just sat there with a plain expression, not understanding anything.

"Does anyone want a drink?" I asked, wanting to do something else, anything else.

All three of them put up their hands straight away, answering simultaneously, "Iced tea please."  
Well, I guess something's always run in the family.

As I was making the assortment of drinks, they started talking about Jack's mother's profession as a doctor, I wandered if she worked at the hospital my Dad was at. They talked about a man who was brought in with his leg bone coming out of his knee, and another who had his shoulder blade completely cracked, honestly the images made me feel sick, I could never be a doctor, I would probably throw up on my patients.

I placed all the drinks on a tray and handed them out to the others, each of them thanking me politely. What is even so great about iced tea? Isn't it just tea that's gone cold, or am I being ignorant again? I sat back down, this time on the floor next to Jack, and just watched as the others talked around me, mostly about whether being a doctor or lawyer was more difficult.

Then, surprisingly, the Dad turned to me, "Say, Hiccup, what do you want to be when you're older?"  
"Well, I would like to work at a zoo, but I'm not sure which position would be my favourite yet."  
I heard Jack give out a small giggle at the last part, mumbling that he knew which it was, earning him a hidden pinch on the back of the forearm.

"Well, I think that's a great career choice, very rewarding, even if the hours are killer and you'll constantly smell of animal shit!"

Hah, yeah, because that didn't make it sound like a rubbish job in any way at all.

They ended up staying for hours, and as time went on I could see that Jack was getting more and more annoyed, while I was actually growing rather fond of the two, the father more than the mother but still.

"So then Hiccup, you must remember this, Jack is, for some reason, very lazy when it comes to... tidying up after himself, so if you find any... dirty messes around the bedroom, get him to do it. Or use a pencil to push it into the bin!"

His mother beamed as the two proceeded to walk out the door, I heard a dull thudding as they went, I presumed Jack was banging his head against the wall.

I waved them down the stairs, Jack just shouting them a goodbye. When they were finally out of sight, I returned to my very humiliated boyfriend. I walked up behind him as he hit his head on the wall yet again.

"It's okay, they're gone now, you can stop before you give yourself a concussion."  
He sighed, but still didn't turn around, "Okay, they weren't as protective this time, but they were about five times more embarrassing!"

"Heh, well well, even you can get humiliated."  
He didn't seem to share my amusement as the room went quiet again.

"So... Did you really used to run around your road in a snow white tutu?" I asked, recalling the tale of how he wanted to be a mystical, powerful princess when he was about five or six years old.

He proceeded to slam his head yet again.

**Yeah, so not the most exciting of chapters, but no=one's life is always full of drama, that's just not realistic. But the next chapter will be, Finn's secret will finally be revealed! And of course Stoick and Hiccup will have another awkward conversation too.**


	21. Finale

**This is the last chapter of the story! I know, it feels like forver since my last update, but I was debating over how to end this, and I came to the conclusion that this story has run its course, so it's best to end it while it is still reasonably good.**

This is certainly not how I would like to spend my Monday morning, not at all. I would much rather stick my hand in a container of venomous leeches than spend time with the idiotic pinnacle of all things manly that is Finn. I was simply walking down a corridor and for some reason unbeknownst to myself this blockheaded narcissist decided to join me, and immediately started prattling on about his latest sporting endeavour, believing that I actually cared.

"You see, you gotta hit the ball just right, or else it will spin out of control."

I groaned internally, what the hell was he going on about? At first it was rugby, now it sounded like tennis or something equally mundane.

"If you hit it just hard enough, it will hopefully fly over their heads."

Seriously, this is getting absolutely tedious and is just plain tiring. I find it abhorrent that I have to act nice to this person due to I have no proof of how much of a prick they are.

I sighed loudly and stopped in my path, waiting to see how long it would take for him to notice. Hopefully he would just keep walking as he becomes increasingly more involved in his own little world where he is the king. I leant up against the entrance to a janitor's closet, which seemed to emit a strange smell, as he walked for about two more seconds before stopping.

"Are you finished? Why are you even following me?"

"Well, because I want to get to know you better!"

Like hell that's the reason, he didn't even say it convincingly.

I stared into his eyes for a short time, my gaze hard and unfaltering, a single eyebrow raised sky high.

He eventually relented, shoulders slumping downwards in defeat, "Fine, I'm bored and you're too much fun to annoy, you're so easily riled up."  
"Why not go annoy Jack?"  
"Because I don't know where he is." Huh, well that makes two of us, he went to the toilet earlier at the start of break, but never came back, now it's nearly finished.

"And what about Mic?"

He seemed to stiffen a little, rubbing the side of his arm with the other.

"We had an argument, a rather big one if I'm honest. We're not really friends anymore; we both got angry and did some things that we're not proud of."  
Oh? Could this be what I'm thinking it is?

"When was this?"  
"Saturday just gone. Not that it's any business of yours."

Yep, it had to be, they were the couple at the park, who else could it be? Now that I think about it, how could I not have recognised them? And, I suppose, it may not be my business, but that doesn't mean I can't interfere with injustice.

I continued to lean against the door, but backed away from him by about an inch.

He chuckled grimly, "But I'm sure we'll hit it off again, we always do."  
"Hmm, so hitting is a regular thing with you?" The words left my mouth before I could even think about them.

Shit, this is going to cause trouble.

His face was still and plain, and that's what worried me the most. It was if he was putting up an act all this time, and now it had been dropped. It was as if this was the true him, a vacant, empty shell.

"Hmph," he uttered lowly as he advanced slowly towards me, soon standing directly in front of me.

"What was that just now?"

"Nothing."

I vainly attempted to move to the left but he slammed both arms either side of me, blocking ay escape that I had. My eyes widened considerably, but I avoided eye contact with him.

"What do you know?" Well, if I didn't suspect him before, I certainly do now.

I turned as he leant in, his minty breath gently hitting my nostrils, filling them entirely. The space between us continued to shorten with each passing second.

And then it widen in an instant.

The door behind me flew open in a sudden, fluid motion as I was pushed force back by a strong hand on my chest, the winding me considerably. I tried to grab at Finn's top, his arm, anything, but they became too far out of the reach of my small arms. Stuttering and coughing, I fell to the floor in an ungraceful motion, my hands coming up to cover my head just before I crashed to the ground. My elbow made sudden contact with the concrete surface, and it at once felt as if the bone had smashed into millions of tiny fragments, never to be whole again.

A heavy gasp left my lips as another hand pulled me to my feet again, grabbing me by the collar of my top, dragging me cruelly up. I gave strangulated cries as my hairs were caught between the strong fingers, feeling as if they were going to tear every strand from my head. I was now on my feet again, but my head was still being pulled back, at least until I was launched into the wall opposite me, my forehead colliding with the bricks, leaving behind an intense burning pain in its wake. If it wasn't bleeding, it was most certainly going to bruise something fierce.

I turned and squinted up at Finn's disturbingly passive face; despite the pain I was in, I had become accustomed to how it felt to be bullied and harassed. The fear and pain becomes numbness and routine. Eventually the feeling of being worthless turns to apathy, and sometimes even arrogance in the most extreme cases. But more often than not, you simply become hollow, and accept that this will happen whether you like it or not. It's quite appalling that it happens like that actually.

"So then, you little shit, who told you?"

Yep, it was definitely him, this reaction is makes it clear as day, "I saw you in the park the other day."

He looked unsurprised, well it is a public place after all, yet I imagine many people probably saw it, though not many would comment on it.

"Huh, I knew that would come back to bite me in the ass one day."

He turned around and scratched the back of his head rapidly like a dog. As he did, my gaze was going around the cluttered space we were in, looking at a large, bubbly puddle on the beige wall, what the hell was that? I hope it's not some kind of mould, I don't want to get ill from that. Wait, this is really not what I'm meant to be thinking about right now.

"Hey, hey! What are you gawking at? Focus on me!"

My attention was ripped back to the boy in front of me as he clawed at the front of my top, the green fabric collection between his tensed fingers. As my feet were lifted off the ground I could stare straight into his eyes. They didn't hold any of the ferocity that he so desperately tried to portray, instead he just looked like a pathetic chid, crying for attention.

I sighed heavily as he just held me there, "Are you going to hit me or not?"

He seemed slightly perplexed by how blunt I was being, but he soon hardened his gaze again.

"What's the point of hitting you? It won't keep you quiet or cause you any trouble in the future; I need something better, something dirtier."

Uh huh, because there's really a lot of dirt on me at this school, everyone already hates me pretty much. He kept looking deep into my eyes and I knew that he couldn't think of a single thing to have over me, just like I knew he wouldn't.

"You know, even if you spread stuff about me, nobody will care, they don't like me anyway," I wriggled in his grip, my feet trying to find something to perch on.

"Oh yeah, the only one that does is Jack, and he constantly bitches about you to me!"  
"What? No he doesn't!" He wouldn't do that, would he?

"Yeah, he's always moaning about how you don't appreciate him, how he feels the entire thing between you is one-sided, and how much trouble you have caused."

Does he really do that, and to a guy like this? I watched as a cruel smile grew on Finn's face, the only emotion he had shown for a while. I couldn't tell if this was joy he was taking from the possibility of me believing a lie, or if it was a sick pleasure in a horrible truth. Either way, it hurt. Does Jack really think this, even though I've been trying to make him feel more wanted recently? Is it still not enough, but what more can I do?

"I don't believe you, now for god's sake, let me go already. I don't want to smell your breath anymore."

I could tell that what I just said irritated him, but that was the most fun, I needed some payback, "Well, if have to keep you silent now faggot-"

But as he was about to finish his sentence, the door opened, revealing a shadowed figure in the doorway.

He didn't say anything, and he certainly didn't look happy, dark eyebrows closely knitted.

Great, Jack.

I couldn't see him properly, but it was obviously his voice. I tried to peer around Finn, but the big lug's head was far too large and kept getting in the way. My vision returned to him, and I saw that he had a horrendous glint in his eyes coupled with a small grin, that was never a good sign.

"Hmm, pucker up fag," he whispered lowly, and slowly pressed his lips to mine.

My eyes opened wider than they had ever gone before as our lips connected. It was not a feeling of love or compassion, but of spite and hate; he wanted Jack to see this, this was his way of making me shut up. Not physical violence, but mental and emotional abuse. The worst type of abuse.

He didn't move his lips, obviously not enjoying the kiss, which was far too mutual, but he held it, wanting Jack to think it was something like a deep kiss. I had to breathe out through my nose, which came out sharply, adding to the illusion that it was in fact a deep kiss. Crap, crap, crap.

He pulled away, smiling cruelly as he did so, and dropped me back to my feet.

"Good enough?" He sneered down at me, enjoying the struggle that was sure to come after this.

I watched as he turned around, putting a hand on Jack's shoulder, failing to pull him out of his stunned state. I watched as he leaned in closely and whispered something, something very close to Jack's ear, looking at me all the time. And I also watched as Jack proceed to punch him square in the jaw, and walk angrily towards me.

My arm was grabbed roughly, causing me to let out a small, ignored cry of pain as I was pulled harshly out of the room. upon my exit, I made sure to stand forcefully on the floored Finn's hand as we exited, feeling a small amount of pleasure as he winced and writhed in pain. Bastard deserves it. Who the hell snogs someone to keep them quiet? I'd rather just be beaten up instead, at least that way it was less personal and it got it over with.

I was lead down multiple corridors, calling Jack's name out every once in a while, bit receiving no reply, seeing only the side of a very aggravated face, blue eyes hardened in annoyance, holding none of that playfulness that I had come to know. Great, I can tell how this is going to play out, it'll be just like a shoddy romance film; he'll scream and cry at me for kissing someone else, shouting how could I do it, all the while I vainly try to convince him otherwise. Afterwards we'll break up and one of us will become depressed while the other becomes jaded and angry for a long time.

I was spun roughly around to Jack's front in another empty corridor, looking down at the ground as he glowered down at me. I shuffled back and forth as I rubbed my reddened elbow, hoping to sooth the pain. I felt a hand push my fringe out the way to reveal my forehead, making me wince as it touched a sensitive lump. I guess I really did bruise from the collision. I heard a low tut in disapproval as the hand slunk back to its owner, who still remained silent. I couldn't bring myself to look in his eyes, instead focusing on his shoes.

"Hiccup," I didn't look up, "What the fuck was that!"

He paced back and forth, "Jack, it wasn't me-"

"Why the fuck did he kiss you, and why are you covered in bruises! What the hell did he mean when he said to me that you were a good seducer?"  
Wait, that is what he whispered to him? Well, it explains why Jack punched him. I looked over at Jack's knuckles and saw that they were bruised by a small amount, he must have really packed a wallop in that punch.

"But Jack, you know me, I'm not that type of person!"  
He ran a hand through his hair as he laughed, "I know!"

Hey, it may be true, but you don't have to be so enthusiastic about it, "Then what are you mad about?"  
"Because I'm fucking confused! What the hell is going on? Explain it to me for the start!"

He walked up to me, and I yet again found myself pushed up against a wall, but this time I felt worried. This time it was Jack, someone I cared about deeply.

"Okay, okay, I'll tell you the whole thing."

I told him about the events that I saw at the park, how an unidentified man and woman were arguing, ending up with her being struck violently across the face. He seemed shocked at this, stating that Michelle was absent today due to a head injury that she obtained over the weekend. He seemed even more shocked when I revealed that it was in fact Finn that struck her, evidenced by his rash reaction towards my Freudian slip.

I watched as he gripped at his sleeves, tightening the hold with every passing second, his teeth bearing slightly. I pitied him, seeing how he obviously felt some sort of unneeded guilt for Finn's actions, even though there was no possibility of him ever being able to stop it, not while Finn kept up his act around him.

"Hiccup," I looked up slowly, scanning his hardened face, "I don't want you to hang around him, even if he was only kissing you to cause trouble, I want you to keep away from him."

Well, it's not like I wanted to hang around that creep anyway. He leaned in closer to my face, examining every inch of it.

"Jack, what are you doing?"  
"Just,... just hold still."

And with that he rested his forearm against the wall and placed a chaste kiss upon my lips that lasted but a second.

"There, that should do for now."  
I blinked a couple of times, "For what?"

"To get his dirty mark off of you, but tonight, I'll make sure to get every inch of you clean."

Hmm, every time something like this happens I don't seem to come out feeling very clean at all.

I bit my bottom lip as it became silent between us, our eyes locked together.

"Fine, but we are going to see my Dad afterwards."  
"Okay.. wait, we?"

"Yes, we. I think it's about time that my Dad meets my boyfriend."

He paled, which made him look like a phantom considering how pale he already is, "Oh, boy."

We walked down the hospitals corridor, hand in hand, behind Doctor Jackson. Well, it wasn't as cutesy as it sounds, I was having trouble walking by myself. I shot Jack a glare as I stumbled for the fifth time since we entered the building.

"Heh, sorry, guess I got a bit carried away."  
I squinted my eye tighter, "What part of slower is so unclear? Now I can't sit down when we go in the room."

He seemed to get a small amount of joy at my suffering, which greatly annoyed me, but then again if it was the other way around then I too would probably be feeling amused.

"Just so you know, I can hear you," Jackson said calmly.

I blushed as Jack grinned brightly, seemingly proud of his endeavours, feeling a great boost to his ego no doubt.

"I don't want to hear it anymore," the young Doctor continued as he gave a flourish of his white coat to untangle it from his legs.

"Sorry, won't happen again."  
Huh, sure it won't.

We arrived back outside the same door as last time, Jackson not even stopping to say anything, just going straight past and giving the door a quick gesture.

"Go on in, he's been informed you're here."

"Thank you Doctor."  
"Also, he will be allowed to return home tomorrow, so I suggest that the two of you collect him in the early morning."

Wee both stiffened, tomorrow? I looked over at Jack, both of us thinking the same thing. I can't just leave Dad by himself, but I really don't want to leave Jack alone either. But I suppose that Dad has to come first in this situation.

I gave my boyfriend a nod as I released his hand and grabbed the door handle, giving it a sharp knock.

"Come in," called out a deep voice from within. I see he has his strength back again, hopefully that won't be a bad thing for Jack.

I entered as soon as the voice faded out, standing in front of my Dad who was staring at me with a small sign of happiness on his lips.

"Hey, um, Dad, we're here to visit you."  
"We?"

I turned around, not knowing what he meant. But I quickly noticed that Jack was absent from the room, still in the hallway.

He peeped around the doorway, being met with my deadpanned stare as soon as he did, resulting in him slinking in with his tail between his legs.

"Yes, we are here to visit you."

My Dad crossed his arms at the new person in his room, "And who is this then?"  
"This is Jack," he gave a sheepish wave, "My boyfriend."  
The room went silent.

It was a good minutes before Dad stuttered out any reply, "So, this is the infamous boy then is it?"  
Said boy shuffled in his place, "Hello, sir, so Hiccup talks about me does he?"  
"No, not that much, but I knew he liked you before he told me."  
Jack looked over at me and smiled, the fact seemingly warming his heart.

Then I had a thought, it was a horrible thought, but it would prove to be mildly amusing for me. A little payback if you will.

"Dad, I'm starving, so I'm going to get some food from the canteen, do you want anything?"  
He shook his head in appreciation, and smiled a small smile. That was a good sign.

I looked over at Jack, who was paler than ever, mouthing the words, "have fun" at him as I left.

I am so going to get moaned at later for this.

I stumbled out the room, hearing Jack give out a quiet squeak as I closed the door behind me, causing me to release a small laugh in return. I wasn't really going to go to the canteen, I'm not hungry, but they don't need to know that. I'll just stand here for about five or ten minutes while they try and communicate to each other, which they probably won't do if I'm there. Plus I want Jack be scared out of his skin, that's always comical to me.

I positioned myself against the wall as soon as I heard low mumbling emerge from the room from which I had just left, occasionally the tones would get deeper, sometimes softer. They continued for about five minutes.. But then I heard something that generally surprised me: a laugh. I raised my eyebrows as I realised who it came from. It was not Jack's nervous chuckle, or Dad's laugh of annoyance, but a genuine laugh. In all my life I had never made Dad laugh like that.

I wobbled back over to the doorway and weakly slid the door aside, looking upon the scene. Jack was sitting comfortably in the seat nearest the bed as Dad was looking rather relaxed in his bed, more so than I had ever seen him.

They both looked up at me, Jack looking more mischievous than the other, "Hey Hic, no food?"

"There was nothing I wanted," and what was with the "Hic"? Just a second ago it was "Hiccup".

My Dad looked back over to Jack, patting him on the side of the arm, "He always was a fussy eater, he never ate the fish I bought, just the apples."  
They both chuckled together, "Well, explains why he has no meat on his bones."

"Heh, you need to cook some dazzling meals for him Jack, my son!"

I looked shocked at that comment, Dad had never said that type of thing to me in casual conversation. But when he saw my frustration, my Dad motioned me over, patting the side of the bed with his hand.

"Come on son, tell me more about how the two of you met."  
Hmph, well I don't know what Jack did to put my Dad in such a great mood, but I'm not going to argue. Maybe Jack had some secret power that made everyone relax and have fun around him?

I perched on the side of the bed uncomfortably, resorting to standing, as I began to remind my Dad of the day I hit my head, and how the events of this story came to pass, chuckles from all three of us filling the air as we went on about my clumsiness. But although it was at my expense, I wouldn't change it for anything in the world.

**Oooh, that was such a cliche ending! But oh well, I like mushy endings. There will be a series of Drabbles that continue from this story, possibly tomorrow! :D**

**I decided that I am now going to try and write a Non-AU story for this pairing, about what would happen if Jack was present during the events of the HTTYD film. Hopefully that will be fun!**

**Thank you all so much for reading, I have over ten thousand veiws, that is truly amazing! This is the longest I have ever stuck with anything, due to no motivation, but your reveiws made me feel obliged to continue! I hope my future stories continue to entertain! :D**


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